Mold and water stains, overflowing trash cans and dirt everywhere: Employees of the Berlin Immigration Office (LEA) at the Friedrich-Krause-Ufer site in Moabit are sounding the alarm. The staff councils of the employees are outraged because, since 2024, the contracted cleaning companies have not been keeping to the scheduled cleaning intervals. Floors reportedly go unscrubbed for days and trash cans are not emptied; one trash can even had to be painted over because it could not be cleaned. The hygienic conditions in the toilets are said to be catastrophic. The Morgenpost has received images.

According to newly obtained information, LEA chief Engelhard Mazanke has already contacted the interior administration and requested intervention from Berliner Immobilienmanagement (BIM). BIM, as the contractual partner of the cleaning company and landlord of the building, is responsible for maintaining cleanliness. After all, the immigration authority is supposed to meet certain standards and even project a friendly welcoming culture. However, shortcomings in cleaning are not unique to LEA, but affect authorities across Berlin.

Hygiene deficiencies: Union calls for political action

“The conditions at the LEA are a real outrage, and we expect Berlin’s politicians to finally take action here,” says Benjamin Jendro, spokesperson for the Berlin Police Union (GdP), which also represents LEA employees. “It has long been known that Friedrich-Krause-Ufer is increasingly turning into a filthy place, where our colleagues are now exposed to health hazards.” The disastrous cleaning performance has been pointed out several times, but minor short-term improvements cannot conceal the fact that occupational health and safety at the site is being massively neglected, Jendro said.

In response to an inquiry, the LEA confirms the allegations. Even a change of cleaning company by BIM and constant reports have only led to short-term improvements, a spokesperson said upon request: “Overall, the condition is even deteriorating, the dissatisfaction of the affected employees is increasing, as is the number of customer complaints.”

Cleaning companies cite high sickness rates

The LEA is not the only public authority in Berlin currently complaining about the quality of external, private cleaning companies. The companies themselves cite high sickness rates due to the extreme cold as the main reason for the shortcomings. For Jendro, this is no excuse: “If floors are not cleaned regularly or trash cans emptied, if public and staff toilets are left without toilet paper and remain uncleaned, that is disgusting, a health hazard, and at some point comparable to a third-world country rather than the capital of our country.”

Demand: Berlin should again hire its own cleaning staff

The GdP therefore expects an immediate improvement of the situation on site and calls for a general rethink. “Both in the area of property security and in cleaning and caretaker services, the state of Berlin should once again hire its own staff instead of relying on external providers,” Jendro demands. “That creates a sense of connection, we know who is working in security-relevant areas, and in the end we also determine the quality.”

This article was originally written and published on the 5th of February in German. It was translated in English with the use of Artificial Intelligence.