German Chancellor Angela Merkel hopes a new immigration law will make it easier for foreign workers to find jobs, but her push to fill a record number of vacancies risks angering voters who still resent her open-door refugee policy.
With an aging population and a shrinking workforce, Germany needs greater flexibility to fill more than a million empty positions, business leaders say.
"We will continue to depend on foreign professionals," Merkel said in the Bundestag last week, defending her immigration plans against criticism from opposition politicians.