Michael Traub, president of STIHL, the world’s leading chainsaw manufacturer, has publicly called for German workers to put in 40 hours a week without receiving extra pay, framing the proposal as necessary to safeguard the nation’s prosperity and its costly welfare state. The appeal appeared in an opinion piece published by Euronews on September 7.
What exactly is STIHL’s CEO proposing?
Traub is advocating for a broad shift in Germany’s labor rules, pushing companies and employees to accept longer working hours as a standard practice rather than an exception. Crucially, his plan does not include a corresponding rise in wages, meaning workers would effectively contribute more labor time for the same pay. He frames this as one of several structural reforms needed to keep German industry competitive on the global stage.
Germany must work more, not less, if it wants to preserve its prosperity and its social model, the STIHL chief argued.
Why is this being raised now?
Germany’s economy has faced sustained pressure from sluggish growth, rising energy costs, and mounting competition from abroad, all of which have strained the country’s generous social welfare programs. Business leaders like Traub argue that without significant productivity gains or increased labor input, funding pensions, healthcare, and other public services will become increasingly difficult. The proposal reflects a broader concern among German industrialists that current labor policies are unsustainable given demographic pressures, including an aging workforce and shrinking labor pool.
What could this mean for German workers?
If adopted widely, such a shift would mark a significant departure from decades of gradual reductions in working hours across much of Western Europe, including Germany, where debates over four-day workweeks have gained traction in recent years. Labor unions and employee advocates are likely to push back strongly against any proposal that increases hours without additional compensation, viewing it as a reversal of hard-won gains. The proposal is likely to intensify an already heated national debate over how Germany balances economic competitiveness with worker protections and living standards.
