"Surrender to the crisis": employers reject four-day proposal

In order to survive the Corona crisis, many companies are using the red pencil – at the expense of the workforce. IG Metall suggests agreeing a four-day week as an option for the companies in the coming collective bargaining round. Employers think little of it.

IG Metall's proposal for a four-day week due to the Corona crisis is facing headwinds from employers. "The German economy is currently suffering a huge productivity shock," said the managing director of the Federal Association of German Employers' Associations (BDA), Steffen Kampeter, of the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" (FAZ). A four-day week with wage compensation exacerbates this shock. "We will only overcome the crisis if we enable prosperity and social security with more work," said Kampeter.

Michael Hüther, President of the employer-related Institute of the German Economy (IW), spoke out against the move brought into play by the union, "because it would be nothing more than an extension and thus surrender to the crisis," Hüther told the FAZ. In this context, he referred to the gross domestic product, which fell by a good ten percent in the second quarter, and warned of rising labor costs as a risk to jobs.

On the other hand, IG Metall boss Jörg Hofmann proposed at the weekend to agree a four-day week as an option for the companies in the coming collective bargaining round in order to prevent job cuts. "The four-day week would be the answer to structural change in sectors such as the auto industry," he told the Süddeutsche Zeitung. Without specifying the requirement, Hofmann spoke of "a certain amount of wage compensation for the employees so that the employees can afford it". In addition, Hofmann announced that, despite the recession, he would demand a wage increase in the coming collective bargaining round.