GOERLITZ, Germany (Reuters) - In less than a month, Ulrich Kueperkoch will open his new brothel. Calls have been pouring in from patrons eager to pay a visit. The only problem is, he has no girls to welcome them.

Germany's Federal Labour Office has rejected his job adverts seeking "hostesses for erotic services" for his "Golden 3 Privatclub" near the historic town of Goerlitz on the Polish border, even though prostitution is legal in Germany.

In fact, prostitutes enjoy worker protection rights and are eligible to social security benefits under a law passed in 2001 by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's centre-left government.

Kueperkoch's dispute with the Labour Office, which runs a network of job-placement agencies, has grabbed headlines because it shows the country's bureaucracy is lagging behind the progressive policy makers in Berlin. Full Story...