Digital Clock, New Rules: Germany’s Plan to Swap the Eight-Hour Day for a 48-Hour Week
26.06.2026 - 19:05:00 | boerse-global.de
At Mercedes-Benz, a simmering dispute over returning to a 40-hour workweek — with no pay raise — has become the latest flashpoint in a broader battle over time at work. Betriebsratschef Ergun Lümali flatly rejected the proposal, which he said would load extra hours onto employees without compensation. The company’s supervisory board had floated the idea as a cost-cutting measure, but the fight now mirrors a nationwide debate over how long people should actually be on the clock.
The timing is no accident. Germany’s federal government is pushing through a fundamental rewrite of its Working Hours Act (Arbeitszeitgesetz), and the draft bill — drawn up by the Labour Ministry — would replace the rigid daily cap of eight hours with a weekly maximum of 48. That figure matches the upper limit set by the European Union. In practice, employees could work as many as 13 hours on a given day, as long as the six-month average stays within the 48-hour boundary.
Business groups have praised the flexibility, saying it allows companies to adapt to fluctuating workloads. But critics, including DIW president Marcel Fratzscher, warn the reform risks piling unsustainable strain onto workers. The government intends for most of the changes to be implemented through collective bargaining agreements.
A second pillar of the reform has stirred debate of its own: employers will be required to record the start, end and duration of each employee’s working day digitally. The electronic documentation mandate is designed to create transparency, but many companies are concerned about the administrative burden it will create.
Parallel to the general overhaul, aviation unions are pressing for stronger protections. The Ufo and Vereinigung Cockpit associations are demanding that flight crews be fully included under the Working Hours Act instead of the blanket exemptions that currently apply to pilots and cabin personnel. Both unions insist on binding rest periods and clearly defined limits on workload.
The land transport sector is also weighing new models. One proposal under review is a four-day workweek with ten-hour shifts. Supporters argue the longer days could make the profession more attractive amid a chronic shortage of drivers. Opponents point to safety risks linked to extended hours behind the wheel.
All these discussions unfold against a tight labour market. Companies in the Baltic states, for example, already fear that without workers from non-EU countries, they will lose staff to Poland or Germany, where wages are higher. The pressure on the transport industry — a backbone of the German economy — is growing.
Infrastructure planning may offer some relief. A new law — the Infrastruktur-Zukunftsgesetz — is supposed to speed up approvals for roads and bridges, a move welcomed by logistics firms. At the same time, the commercial vehicle market is shifting rapidly: in the first quarter of 2026, sales of electric trucks in Europe jumped sharply, driven by stricter CO? targets. Asian manufacturers, in particular, are raising competitive pressure on established European players.
