The delicate belief in the state of the Germans

The crisis affects everyone: employees, companies, society. But when asked who bears the main responsibility for coping with the rising cost of living, the Germans call out to the state particularly loudly. This is the result of a current survey as part of the Randstad job barometer.

This not only compared the expectations of employees from Germany and other countries, but also asked to what extent one-off payments and subsidies had already been promised by the employer. WELT had insight into the study.

When asked who bears the main responsibility for paying for the higher cost of living, 60 percent of German employees see the government as responsible. Workers in other countries share this expectation of the state with only 42 percent. Just behind, at 37 percent, foreign employees place themselves in the position of responsibility. In view of the rising costs, this suggests a greater willingness to save. In contrast, only 26 percent of Germans see themselves as responsible for shouldering the crisis well.

At the same time, they seem to be at least relieving employers of some of their claims: only five percent see companies as having a responsibility to get through the crisis better, for example through one-off payments or higher wages. In an international comparison, this value is significantly higher. Here twelve percent of the employees expect support with the higher costs. Eight percent of German employees insist on their own family, abroad it is seven percent.

In addition to German employees, employees from the USA, Great Britain, the Netherlands and Australia were also interviewed in the study at the beginning of October.

15 percent of German employees found a wage increase in line with the usual cycle of annual salary checks, compared to 21 percent internationally. On the other hand, a larger proportion of those surveyed in Germany have already benefited from one-off payments, namely 14 percent - abroad it was previously nine percent.

There were subsidies for the costs of energy, travel or other daily expenses for 16 percent of Germans, abroad the value is also nine percent.

DIW boss Marcel Fratzscher explains the fact that German employees see the state as primarily responsible on the one hand by the fact that the welfare state is very strong in Germany. At the same time, many Germans remember how massive investments went into reunification and past crises, such as the financial crisis or the corona pandemic.

In addition, the prevailing philosophy in Germany is that people pay a lot of taxes and can therefore demand more from the state. In countries like the USA and Great Britain, it is more likely that the state stays out of the lives of the citizens.

Hagen Lesch is surprised by the demands that Germans place on the state. "That points to a pronounced faith in the state in this country, according to the motto: The state should fix it," says the head of the subject area of ​​work and collective bargaining at the Cologne Institute for Economic Research (IW).

There is another belief behind this, according to Lesch, namely: "The state can also fix it." The fact that the state has done so much crisis management in recent years means that people now believe that it also has to manage this crisis .

"What is reluctantly emphasized in this context is that we are shifting the burden to future generations," says Lesch. This could also be the reason why the 18- to 24-year-olds surveyed have fewer high expectations of the state than older age groups do – because it is the young who will eventually have to foot the bill.

DIW boss Marcel Fratzscher sees a danger in the fact that the demand for relief from the state is growing. In order to prevent this, he considers the concerted action of the Federal Chancellery to be important, in which the division of costs between the federal government and employers is also discussed.

In the short term, more government intervention means more debt. But if such intervention ensures that greater damage to the economy and the welfare state is prevented, the long-term damage will also be smaller. A short-term courageous action by the state costs a lot of money in the short term, but in the long term it allows debt to be reduced much faster and the loss of prosperity to be compensated for more quickly, says Fratzscher.

However, IW expert Lesch also calls for more personal responsibility from each individual: "We cannot avoid the fact that we all have to shoulder this loss of prosperity." That applies to employees and companies alike.

The multi-billion dollar relief package has now been put together. "That will have a positive effect," says Oliver Roth. "This allows companies to plan," says the stock market strategist. Business is also hoping for easing of China's zero-Covid policy. "There are slight signs."

Source: WORLD / Dietmar Deffner

In view of the comparatively high values ​​of the previous one-off payments, DIW boss Fratzscher dampens the expectation: Employees in industries and companies that are globally competitive and have good reserves would particularly benefit from one-off payments. Fratzscher has serious doubts that service professions such as building cleaners, security guards or supermarket cashiers will benefit from one-off payments. In addition, these jobs are not covered by collective agreements. On the other hand, the companies are smaller and have fewer reserves.

Fratzscher's suggestion is therefore that the state should take over the one-off payments in sectors where low wages are paid, so that the social imbalance is not much greater. There is no country in the world that has made greater help possible for its companies and citizens, says Fratzscher. "The state does a lot. But he doesn't do it very accurately."

Since the end of October, employers have had a new tool in their hands to relieve their employees: they can pay out an inflation premium of up to 3,000 euros tax-free. The coming weeks and months will show to what extent this remedy will help employees noticeably.

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