German Ration Cards for Foreign Civil Workers by Marius Bochniak Up to the end of the 39th rationing period

the foreign civil workers received the same general food ration cards as the German population, provided they did not participate in camp catering and were not active in agriculture. Thereby resulted numerous difficulties. In many cases the foreigners could not handle the cards properly; they confounded the individual ration cards and could not divide the four-week rations. Quarrels in the shops and offices were quite often. In addition, it happened that foreign civil workers occasionally exchanged their cards for other articles or sold them and required then the issue of new ration cards from food offices. In such cases or in case of sudden change of the working place it was not controllable whether they already received food cards or not. Since the foreign civil workers did not have uniform identity cards, it was not possible to record the issuance of food ration cards by stamping of an identity document. Therefore the Ministry of Food and Agriculture introduced from the beginning of the 40th rationing period (24th August 1942) for foreign civil workers, who did not participate in camp catering and were not active in agriculture, the weekly cards for foreign civil workers (Wochenkarte fr auslndische Zivilarbeiter, AZ). The weekly AZ ration cards consisted of a middle section and a number of coupons for all rations the foreign civil workers were entitled to in one week. Two free coupons (W1 and W2) were at the disposal of food offices for supplementary rations. The single coupons were valid during the time interval imprinted on them and only in connection with the middle section of the ration card. The weekly tickets were issued to the foreign civil workers by the factories and companies, in which the foreign workers were employed. The enterprises had to submit to the food office, at least one week before beginning of each new rationing period, complete lists of the foreign civil workers and four days before beginning of each new week change messages (entrance, exit), to this list. In the change lists was to be also indicated, of where and from which enterprise of the workers it comes or where it is spoiled and which its future working place. Foreigners, who were active as freelance etc. and who had a firm domicile in Germany (e.g. diplomats, journalists, physicians, travelling salesmen, students) received further their food ration cards from the food offices. The food offices were also authorized to issue ordinary food ration cards to foreign civil workers who resided in Germany already before 1st September 1939, provided they submitted a certificate of their employer that they did not receive weekly ration cards for foreign civil workers from the company.

The rations provided to foreign workers by the ordinary ration cards were not changed by the introduction of the weekly ration cards, since the weekly ticket planned the same ration sets, how they received the German ordinary consumers. The weekly tickets had the advantage that the foreigners had to use only one ration card for the purchase of the nationwide rationed kinds of food. One of the aims of the AZ ration cards was to prevent the foreign civil workers from changing the job not at will. If foreign civil workers were assessed as long, night, heavy, or very heavy workers, they received also supplementary ration cards from the factories. Foreign civil workers in the sense of the decree which introduced the AZ ration cards were members of the Protectorate and the Government General (Czechs, Poles etc.) as well as east workers and stateless people. Ethnic Germans (Volksdeutsche) could obtain upon request ordinary ration cards, provided they could produce from their employer a certificate that they do not receive AZ ration cards and submitted a document of identification of the Volksdeutsche Mittelstelle. Inhabitants of Alsace, Lotharingia and Luxemburg received ordinary food ration cards. Since a rationig period consisted of four weeks, four different AZ ration cards were issued for every rationing period with the number of the week printed on the middle section of the card. Some local food offices attached to the AZ cards additional coupons for the ordering of milk.

The first AZ ration card issued in the 40th rationing period

The layout of the AZ cards was redesigned in the 47th rationing period due to splitting of the 500g bread coupons into 50 g bread coupons.

AZ card for the 60th rationing period issued in Munich. Note the coupon for the ordering of milk on the left hand side of the card.

The AZ ration cards were simplified in the 74th rationing similarly as the other ration cards. Note that no ration cards at all were issued in the first week of the 74th rationing period.

Munich food office issued AZ cards also in the first two rationing periods after the war.