Germany’s Cabinet Approves Minimum Contract Terms for Early-Career Academics, but Unions Say It’s Not Enough
Published on 07/29/2026 at 16:52 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
The German federal cabinet has approved a long-awaited overhaul of the law governing fixed-term contracts in academia—the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (WissZeitVG)—introducing mandatory minimum contract durations for the first time. Research Minister Dorothee Bär described the draft as an “balanced framework” that would create more reliable career prospects after years of uncertainty for early-career researchers.
Under the new rules, doctoral candidates must receive contracts lasting at least three years. For postdoctoral researchers, the minimum drops to two years. The reform targets a deeply entrenched practice of short, repeated fixed-term contracts that has drawn widespread criticism from both academics and labour advocates.
A social clause has been added: researchers caring for relatives may have their maximum permissible contract duration extended, a move intended to improve work-life balance in a field notorious for precarious employment.
Yet the reaction from unions has been swift and harsh. Ver.di had already demanded revisions a day before the cabinet decision. A spokesperson for the union’s executive board pointed out that postdoc contracts can still run up to six years without being shortened, and that the so-called “tariff lock”—which limits collective bargaining flexibility—remains in place.
The Education and Science Union (GEW) and the German Trade Union Federation (DGB) joined the chorus of criticism on the same day. The GEW is calling for the law’s complete abolition, arguing the draft does little to solve the problem of mass fixed-term employment. Currently, four out of five academics without a professorship work on temporary contracts. At universities, the average contract lasts 18 months; at universities of applied sciences, it is just 15 months.
The DGB acknowledged the reform as overdue but said the three-year minimum before a doctorate is too short, demanding six years instead. It also noted that the proposal fails to guarantee a permanent position after the qualification phase ends.
In parallel, the cabinet passed the KI-Migrationsverwaltungsgesetz (KIMVG), a law regulating the use of artificial intelligence in asylum and visa procedures. Authorities will be allowed to use applicant data to train AI models and cross-check internet records, though final decisions must remain with a human.
A decision on the EEG reform from Economy Minister Katherina Reiche is also expected soon. Under the planned changes, new small solar installations would no longer receive permanent subsidies from 2027 onward, aiming to better align renewable-energy expansion with grid development.
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