Working Harder for a Better Economy: IW Chef's Abolition Demand
Executive calls for elimination of holiday to boost economic productivity - Economic boost urged by International Workers' head honcho, suggesting the elimination of a national holiday for improved productivity.
Got a day off coming up? Well, according to IW chief, Michael Huether, you might want to start questioning that. He's pointing a finger at the abolition of Buß- und Bettag as a public holiday back in 1995, suggesting that if you really want to, you can do more work. This comment comes after the Association of Bavarian Business called for getting rid of religious holidays.
On the other hand, Marcel Fratzscher, head of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin), isn't exactly on board with that idea. He insists that the labor shortage in Germany won't be fixed by axing holidays or offering tax breaks for overtime in full-time jobs. Instead, Fratzscher reckons the solution lies in tearing down the numerous employment barriers faced by women, refugees, and foreigners. In his opinion, we can minimize the labor shortage by significantly increasing immigration and removing these barriers for women.
Now, the Ifo Institute, led by President Clemens Fuest, suggests that scraping one public holiday could add €8 billion to the national economy each year. This idea is part of a broader plan to bump up economic output and tackle the workforce shortage, which is causing issues with military and infrastructure development.
As for Michael Huether and Marcel Fratzscher, their exact stances on abolishing holidays for economic improvement aren't clear. Yet, as leading figures in German economic policy circles, their insights often shed light on labor market strategies and economic growth approaches. The focus here is on reducing holidays overall to pump up work hours and boost the economy.
The Buß- und Bettag is a holiday in some German states, observed on the Wednesday before the first Sunday of Advent. It's not specifically linked to the recent discussions about doing away with holidays for economic reasons. Instead, the focus is on shedding public holidays altogether to extend work hours and improve the economy.
- The Ifo Institute proposes abolishing one public holiday to potentially increase Germany's national economy by €8 billion annually, as part of a strategy to enhance economic output and address workforce shortages that impact military and infrastructure development.
- In the context of this discussion, Marcel Fratzscher, head of the German Institute for Economic Research, advocates for addressing the labor shortage not by eliminating religious holidays but by dismantling employment barriers for women, refugees, and foreigners, and increasing immigration instead.
