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Merz wants to cancel holidays: economy or workers' well-being?
Discussion about the cancellation of public holidays in Germany: Merz's approach to work and economic analyzes are driving the debate.
Merz wants to cancel holidays: economy or workers' well-being?
There is currently intense discussion about work culture in Germany, especially after statements by Friedrich Merz, federal chairman of the CDU. Merz has propagated that Germans don't work enough, which is negative for the economy. This claim is met with skepticism as many emphasize the need for holidays and periods of recovery. Initial discussions have already been initiated within the CDU about possible reforms to the organization of working hours, including making maximum working hours more flexible and making citizens' benefits less appealing in order to increase the willingness to work. The business lobby is also calling for the abolition of a public holiday in order to increase productivity, although Merz does not directly support this idea as party leader. perspective daily reports that this discussion is also shaped by a broader social context.
A survey on the topic of holiday abolition has mobilized both supporters and opponents. Many supporters argue that eliminating a holiday could stimulate the economy. They point to calculations by the German Economic Institute (IW), according to which an additional working day could increase the gross domestic product (GDP) in Germany by 5 to 8.6 billion euros. In contrast, unions like Verdi warn of the negative consequences for employees' recovery and are calling for more days off in collective bargaining. The holiday debate takes place in a complex demographic context as the baby boomer generation retires and this impacts the job market. The German economy highlights that Denmark canceled a public holiday last year and benefited from this measure, including a wage increase.
Economic impacts and challenges
The change to fewer public holidays could have different effects in the German construction industry, depending on whether the holiday falls in summer or winter. A holiday accounts for about 0.4 percent of working hours, and the impact of a cancellation could vary between 0.2 percent of economic output, depending on the sector. In addition, the implementation of such a measure is considered complicated. Germany's federal structures require different decisions in each federal state, which makes it difficult to cancel a public holiday.
Experts like Christoph Schröder from the IW emphasize the need for a paradigm shift in the organization of working hours: “We have to work more, not less,” especially in view of the demographic challenges that Germany is facing. In this discussion, economic requirements and the quality of life of employees are in close tension.