Though the German labour market remained closed to workers from 12 new EU member states after the last two waves of accession, many companies have explored the EU as a way around the ban.
The main favoured loopholes include taking on workers from Poland and Romania as "self-employed" and one-man companies. They are also "hired" from employment agencies in Warsaw and Bucharest. These agencies are often little more than post-office box firms. In this way, the workers are outside all German labour legislation with no rights, working for a fraction of a German wage.