From charging slaughterhouse workers for their knives to compensating staff with tanning salon vouchers, German employers are coming up with creative ways to avoid paying a new minimum wage, angering unions.
從對屠宰場的屠夫收取刀子使用費到用美黑沙龍（tanning salon）代金券做員工補貼，德國的雇主們為了不支付最低工資，想出了許多有創意的方式，這一行為也激怒了工會。

Chancellor Angela Merkel's government introduced Germany's first nationwide wage floor of 8.50 euros per hour early this year. The law was the brainchild of the Social Democrats (SPD), who made it a condition of joining Merkel's coalition in 2013.
今年年初，德國總理安吉拉?默克爾（Angela Merkel）領導的政府出臺首個全國最低工資標準，為每小時8.50歐元。這項法案由社會民主黨在2013年提出，并以此作為與默克爾聯合執政的條件。

The centre-left party argued that it was a necessary response to the sharp rise in low-wage jobs over the past decade. Some 3.7 million people were expected to benefit.
中左翼黨派認為，針對過去十年內涌現出大量低薪工作崗位的現象，有必要實施這一舉措。約370萬德國人民有望受益。

But in the months since it went into effect it has become clear that not everyone is taking home more pay. The NGG food and catering union is fielding up to 400 calls a day from people who say their employers are finding ways to circumvent the law.
但事實證明，這項法律生效的幾個月后，并不是每個人都能拿到更多的工資。德國食品餐飲公會（NGG）的員工們每天接到多達400個電話。人們表示，他們的老板正在想辦法避開這項法律規定。

"We're seeing some employers display an awful lot of creativity to get round paying the minimum wage," Burkhard Siebert of the NGG said.
NGG的員工伯克哈特?西伯特（Burkhard Siebert）說：“我們發現，為了逃避給員工們支付最低工資，一些雇主真是創意無窮。”

He said some workers were no longer getting paid for overtime. Others are being charged for drinks and clothing they are required to wear on the job.
他還表示，很多員工加班已經不再有加班費了。還有的員工要為飲料和上班穿的工作服付費。

German Labour Minister Andrea Nahles has admitted to implementation problems but said she had not yet heard anything to suggest the law may need to be changed. The far-left Linke party say it was "botched" and contains too many loopholes.
德國勞工部長安德里亞?那勒斯（Andrea Nahles）承認，法律實施過程中出現了一些問題，但表示她并沒聽到任何關于需要改變這一法律的提議。極左黨派“左派黨”（Linke）認為這項法律很糟糕，存在許多漏洞。

Butchers have complained that they must pay a fee of up to 100 euros per month to use knives they need to cut meat. Bakers say they are being paid in buns and bread instead of cash.
屠夫們抱怨說，他們每個月必須要為切肉的刀支付高達100歐元的使用費。面包師們則表示，他們的工資是小點心和面包而不是現金。

Bernd Bischoff, who runs an advice center for contractors in the city of Oldenburg, said the meat industry was especially affected. Workers from southeast Europe were being charged more for accommodation to offset the cost of higher wages.
貝德恩?畢肖夫（Bernd Bischoff）在奧爾登堡經營一家承包商咨詢中心。據他所說，肉類工業受到了極大的影響。雇主們為了抵消支付高額工資的影響，歐洲東南部的工人們需要支付自己的住宿費用。

Last week a survey by pollster Infratest dimap showed 15 percent of Germans had heard about employers sidestepping the minimum wage from friends and family. Some 3 percent said they were directly affected.
上周，Infratest dimap的民意調查結果顯示，15%的德國人都有從朋友和家人那里得知，雇主們會想盡各種方法避免支付最低工資。有3%的人表示他們正是“受害者”。

Among them is 66-year-old Juergen Schluens, who used to earn around 6.30 euros per hour delivering papers in the village of Witzwort close to the North Sea.
66歲的尤爾根就是“受害者”之一。他的工作是在臨近北海的維茨沃特（Witzwort）村里投遞報紙，曾經每小時賺6.30歐元左右。

Once the new wage law took effect, he says his boss reduced the premium he received for starting work at 4.45 a.m. and demanded that he get the job done in half the time.
新的工資法實施后，他說他的老板減少了他早起（凌晨4:45）工作的補貼，并要求他用一半的時間完成工作。

"The minimum wage of 8.50 euros per hour was paid on paper but my boss said I could only take 52 minutes to do my round," he told Reuters. "I needed about 94 minutes -- and I should know as I've been doing the job for nearly 11 years."
他在接受路透社的采訪中說道：“名義上最低工資應為每小時8.50歐元，但是我的老板要求我在52分鐘內完成工作。以前我要花94分鐘完成，這個我絕對了解，因為這份工作我都做了將近11年了。”

He wrote a note of complaint to his boss and says his contract was subsequently terminated without notice, prompting him to take his employer to court. Schluens' employer did not respond to a request for comment.
他寫了一張字條投訴他的老板，結果他的老板在沒通知他的情況下終止了合同，他只好將老板送上法庭。尤爾根的老板并未對采訪要求做出回應。

Unions report cases of bakeries, a solarium and a gym giving staff coupons to use on site rather than paying the minimum wage. A baker who refused such an offer was told to give the vouchers to her husband, the NGG said.
工會報告稱，數家面包店、一家日光浴場和一家體育館不給員工發最低工資，而是用到店使用的優惠券代替。據NGG稱，一位拒收優惠券的面包師被告知可以將這些代金券送給她的丈夫。

Other workers have had their holiday entitlement reduced or premiums for working nights, holidays and Sundays slashed.
還有的員工遭遇法定假期縮短，或者夜班、節假日和周日上班的補貼被削減。

Firms breaking the law face fines of up to 500,000 euros.
違反最低工資法規定的公司面臨高達50萬歐元的罰款。

But it's not bad news for everyone. Uwe Schlegel, a Cologne lawyer, advises small firms on how to get around the minimum wage legally. Demand for his services is "extremely high".
但對有些人而言，這并不是壞消息。來自科隆（Cologne）的律師烏維?施萊格爾（UweSchlegel）為小企業合法逃避支付最低工資提供咨詢。他現在的業務需求“極其大”。

Vocabulary

brainchild：智慧結晶

circumvent：回避

sidestep：回避

on paper：名義上

（翻譯：hyylf 編輯：江巍）