A survey has revealed that a majority of employees in Germany support limiting their working hours. 72 percent of those surveyed want to restrict their daily working time to a maximum of eight hours, as announced by the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) in Berlin on Thursday. DGB Chairwoman Yasmin Fahimi criticized any potential weakening of the Working Time Act as “counterproductive” and a “one-sided shift in the burden on employees.”
The survey for the German Trade Union Confederation’s (DGB) Good Work Index also revealed that 98 percent of respondents do not want to work more than ten hours a day. The DGB stated that it is “remarkable” that even among those who very frequently or often exceed the eight-hour workday, 59 percent would prefer to adhere to it if they had the choice.
According to the survey, only 40 percent of employees are satisfied with their current weekly working hours. 53 percent would like shorter working hours. In cases of poor working conditions, as many as 72 percent would like shorter working hours, the DGB explained. For this year’s survey, approximately 4,000 employees were interviewed by telephone using a random sample.
According to the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB), the most frequently cited reason for the gap between desired and actual working hours is inflexible operational processes. A survey found that 63 percent of respondents cited rigid structures as an obstacle to shorter working hours. Furthermore, 60 percent of employees reported being unable to complete their workload within the allotted time.
The DGB also criticized the fact that the health consequences of long working hours are measurable, and that the work-life balance is “massively” impaired. The survey revealed that more than 40 percent of employees frequently or very frequently exceed the eight-hour workday.
“In the debate surrounding working hours, the impression is sometimes given that people are like machines that can simply run longer at the push of a button,” explained DGB Chairwoman Fahimi. However, working hours and rest periods must be “in a balanced relationship so that employees can remain healthy.” The current Working Time Act, therefore, “serves precisely this purpose of protecting employees from an occupational health perspective.”
Currently, working hours for employees in Germany are limited to eight hours per day. In exceptional cases, an extension to up to ten hours is possible, for example, if this is compensated for later. However, according to the coalition agreement between the CDU/CSU and the SPD, a maximum weekly working time is to replace the eight-hour day rule.
The chairman of the service sector union Verdi, Frank Werneke, stated that there is “absolutely no reason to undermine the eight-hour day, as the coalition intends.” The existing regulations already allow “a maximum degree of flexibility.” Where overtime is necessary, for example in hospitals or public transport, this is regulated everywhere in collective bargaining agreements. Allowing overtime in general, on the other hand, could enable employers in the parcel delivery sector, for example, to “ruthlessly” enforce work schedules of 13 hours at a stretch, including breaks, he criticized.
Guido Zeitler, chairman of the Food, Beverages and Catering Union (NGG), also insisted that the eight-hour workday “must not be touched.” Anyone who wants to further extend the working days of employees in sectors such as confectionery, bakeries, or the hospitality industry “is ignoring the reality of overtime, weekend shifts, physical strain, and lack of rest.”
AFP – Translated by Blackout News