Arbeitseinsatz

To compensate for the labour shortage in Germany that resulted from the large numbers of German men drafted for military service, forced labour was recruited from neighbouring countries. Between 1940 and 1944 about 387,000 Dutch men were forced to work in Germany, in many cases in the war industry. In the Netherlands men were drafted for forced labour as well. During the final years of the occupation, the men were caught in raids and round-ups. In 1942 the Arbeitseinsatz was the ground for deporting Dutch Jews to Germany under the pretext that they would work at special labour camps there under police supervision. Most deported Jews, however, never entered the Arbeitseinsatz but were taken directly to extermination camps. Their fate was Vernichtung durch Arbeit [destruction through labour].