DGB head Fahimi on Labor Day: "We want an eight-hour day instead of a hamster wheel"

Unions across the country celebrated Labor Day with appeals for the eight-hour day, better working conditions, and higher wages. Numerous rallies and events took place on Thursday; this year's motto of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) was "Stand strong with us." Workers are "not the cause of the economic downturn, and we will ensure that they do not suffer," said DGB Chair Yasmin Fahimi at the central rally in Chemnitz. 

There must be an end to "the chatter that people are skipping school, that they're lazy, that they simply have to work more," she demanded. Regarding the CDU/CSU and SPD's plans for working hours, Fahimi said: "We want an eight-hour day instead of a hamster wheel. Hands off the Working Hours Act."

Frank Werneke, chairman of the service workers' union Verdi, expressed a similar sentiment. He stated that it was absolutely counterproductive to now use a weekly rather than a daily maximum working time as a benchmark. 

"Working 13 hours at a stretch should be possible," Werneke told ARD at the May rally in Ingolstadt. However, it is true "that employees in Germany are putting off 600 million hours of overtime and aren't getting them reduced." Verdi will take a stand against the "attack on the Working Hours Act."

Currently, working hours for employees are limited to eight hours per day. In exceptional cases, an extension to up to ten hours is possible. The CDU/CSU and SPD want a weekly limit instead of this daily maximum.

With regard to the planned infrastructure package worth millions of euros and the announced electricity price reduction, Fahimi said: "Now that the framework has been set through investment commitments, where depreciation is to be possible, where energy costs are to be reduced, we call on employers: Finally do your job." They must ensure secure jobs, good, fair wages, and good working conditions.

Fahimi also advocated for a "genuine collective bargaining agreement law" so that "public contracts are only awarded to companies bound by collective agreements."  

The Education and Science Union (GEW) demanded that at least an additional €130 billion be made available from the special funds for the education sector. The money is necessary to effectively address the massive investment backlog in education at the local, state, and federal levels, said GEW deputy chairman Andreas Keller at the rally in Marburg.

Politicians also participated in the debate. Outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) wrote on the online service X: "There are still far too many people who have to work hard for too little money. That's why I'm in favor of decent wages." He also said he favors "strong unions. They are important for the social cohesion of our country."

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's Minister-President Manuela Schwesig (SPD) spoke out in favor of raising the minimum wage to €15 at the DGB rally in Schwerin. She "relies on the Minimum Wage Commission, comprised of employers and employees, to determine the path for this," Schwesig said. The goal is an overall increase in wage levels. Therefore, the state government is committed to increasing collectively agreed wages.

Labor Day is a public holiday in Germany and many other countries. It is the most important day of action for trade unions. According to the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB), 310,000 people participated in a total of 420 DGB events and rallies nationwide this year.