We report on spin polarized electron photoemission experiments on compressively strained Ge/SiGe/Si(001) layers. Spin polarization of conduction band electrons up to P=62% at T=120 K has been observed, well above the theoretical limit of P=50% valid for bulk materials. Such spin polarization increase, can be attributed to the strain-induced removal of the heavy-hole light-hole degeneracy in the valence band. A set of Ge epilayers with different strain levels has been characterized, achieving an experimental correlation between the measured polarization and the strain in the epilayer.