Allianz CEO Oliver Bäte urges to relieve middle-income earners from taxes. To finance such a step, he brings an increase in the inheritance tax into discussion in the “Handelsblatt”.
“I would introduce a stepped inheritance tax, for example, from a wealth of one million euros. The higher the inheritance, the stronger the tax rate increases”, Bäte said. “My concern is to tax people who can live very comfortably without working a single day. In this question, I stand quite far left on the political spectrum”, he added.
Furthermore, the Allianz CEO advocated for reforms to reduce the record-high absenteeism in German companies. Employees in Germany are, on average, 20 days a year ill, while the EU average is eight. A new federal government could reintroduce the so-called waiting day for reporting sick, which was abolished in the 1970s. “This would make the employees bear the costs of the first sick day themselves”, Bäte explained.