Bernd Fitzenberger, director of the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), rebuts German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s claim that Germans work the “least” compared to other countries. “The analysis does not hold when viewed as a blanket statement” Fitzenberger told Handelsblatt in its Wednesday issue. “In Germany more people are employed than ever-both absolutely and as a share of the working‑age population. The total number of hours worked is at a record level”. He added that to sustain employment and prosperity, “we need immigration, reduced emigration, more labour participation among older people, and increased working hours for women”.
Fitzenberger also cautioned against abolishing part‑time rights. “Research does not prove that eliminating part‑time automatically increases total hours” he said. “It can even produce the opposite effect. For example, when France introduced a 24‑hour minimum weekly work regime in 2014, the result was a decline in female employment”.
He dismissed blanket criticism of the four‑day workweek. “For young parents, such ‘full‑time‑near part‑time’ arrangements can be an excellent solution” he noted. “If both parents work four days a week for 25 to 30 hours, and childcare arrangements fit, they can stay integrated into the labour market”. Fitzenberger suggested that, over the long term, this model often proves more productive than a traditional one‑income approach.