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Germany starts the 4-day working week on February 1

2024-01-30 13:05:16Lifestyle SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Germany starts the 4-day working week on February 1

Germany's battle to revive its sluggish economy is about to take an experimental turn as many companies test the benefits of the shorter work week. A six-month program starting Feb. 1 will give hundreds of workers an extra day off each week while keeping them on full pay. The study aims to find out whether unions are right when they say such a decision could not only make staff healthier and happier, but also more productive.

The project underlines a wider change taking place in the German labor market, where a shortage of skilled workers is putting pressure on companies to fill vacancies. The shortage, combined with high inflation, has encouraged workers in all industries to demand higher wages and maintain the flexibility and independence they gained during the pandemic.

Train drivers in Germany are currently on a six-day strike, demanding that Deutsche Bahn reduce the working week to 35 hours from 38 hours without any pay cuts. The country's construction union is demanding a pay rise of more than 20% for many of its 930,000 workers, a move some economists warn could fuel inflation.

According to an industry lobby survey last year, half of German companies are at least partially unable to fill job vacancies. And the problem will get worse: more than 7 million people are expected to drop out of the German workforce by 2035, as birth rates and immigration fall far short of what is needed to replace the aging population.

And unhappy workers come at a high price. According to a recent Gallup study, low engagement cost the global economy 8.1 trillion euros last year. This is 9% of global gross domestic product. The average of 21.3 days that Germans were unable to work in 2022 meant a loss of 207 billion euros in added value, according to the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Supporters of the four-day week also argue that it could draw untapped potential into the labor market in Germany, a country that has one of the highest rates of part-time work in the EU, according to Eurostat. While Germany has by far the highest economic productivity in Europe, a lack of investment in innovation and digitization has hindered productivity gains.


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