Bethel - Just don't rush!

"It can take a while to put on my protective equipment," explains Wolfgang Starck. He routinely puts on his helmet, which is connected to an air filter device via a hose. "Safety first," says the proWerk employee, who has had an integrated workplace at the Bielefeld-based bicycle accessories manufacturer Hebie for three years. After checking that everything is correctly positioned, he switches on the machine and grinds aluminium mudguards.

"You need a sure instinct for this work. Not everyone can do that," says Hebie production manager Christian Westermann. He particularly appreciates Wolfgang Starck's quality awareness and conscientiousness. He also has a reliable jumper in him who can be deployed in many areas - whether grinding sheet metal, bagging screws or gluing labels. It is precisely this variety that Wolfgang Starck likes about his job.

The 60-year-old is one of 314 people currently employed by the proWerk foundation who work in an integrated workplace. Although the clients provide their services to an employer on the primary labour market outside of a workshop, they remain their employees. "I think it's good that I still have the protected framework," says Wolfgang Starck with satisfaction. He is also familiar with the primary labour market. As a trained warehouse logistics specialist, he has worked in various companies. At some point, the man from Bielefeld no longer felt well. "I felt increasingly insecure and suffered from the high workload." He pulled the ripcord and registered with Bethel.