Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- German banks receiving aid from the government’s 500 billion-euro ($715 billion) rescue package should be prohibited from firing workers, Germany’s Ver.di labor union said.

“The workers didn’t cause the financial crisis,” said Uwe Foullong, chief negotiator for Ver.di, which represents about 250,000 bank employees, in an e-mailed statement today. “Taxpayer money to support companies shouldn’t be used to raise the societal costs through unemployment.”

The German government should outlaw companies still making a profit from firing workers if lenders don’t reach job security agreements with the union, it said. Banks such as Commerzbank AG have been forced to cap management pay and cancel bonuses after accepting government aid. Financial companies worldwide have cut more than 242,000 jobs since the outbreak of the U.S. subprime- mortgage crisis last year, according to Bloomberg data.

For Related News:
Stories on German unions on the Bloomberg: {TNI GER LABOR BN}

To contact the reporter on this story: Aaron Kirchfeld in Frankfurt at akirchfeld@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: December 29, 2008 06:01 EST