Arnold Wochenmark also did not receive a work permit in Switzerland after his apprenticeship. He wanted to follow his brother to the USA, but since they stopped immigration from Germany after the start of the war in 1940, these plans failed. To encourage the refugees to move on, Switzerland introduced a work duty in March 1940. Between July 1941 and September 1942, Arnold had to do heavy road construction work in the Schauenburg labor camp. Later he was employed in agriculture near Basel.