German industrial leaders are pushing for an end to the 35-hour workweek without wage compensation to combat surging labor costs. Stihl supervisory board chair Nikolas Stihl warned that Germany can no longer afford the shorter schedule amid hundreds of thousands of lost manufacturing jobs ahead of autumn tariff talks.
The debate over Germany’s industrial competitiveness has intensified as corporate leaders demand longer working hours to prevent further job losses. Nikolas Stihl, the supervisory board chair of the family-owned forestry and gardening equipment manufacturer Stihl, issued a blunt warning regarding the economic viability of the country’s current labor model.
Nikolas Stihl, Supervisory Board Chair, Stihl, stated that in good times Germany could afford the 35-hour workweek, but currently it can no longer do so, and that the social partners should become aware of their responsibility here and talk about the issue.
The Manufacturing Bleed and Cost Pressures
The push to dismantle the 35-hour standard stems from deep anxiety over the deindustrialization of Germany. Stihl noted that industrial jobs are currently disappearing or at imminent risk. The forestry and gardening equipment maker’s leadership emphasized that extending working time without increasing pay would provide an immediate mechanism to lower surging labor costs.
External pressures compound the domestic squeeze. Stihl pointed directly to strong market competition originating from China alongside sweeping US tariffs as key drivers behind the recent manufacturing decline. Data compiled by the Cologne-based Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft shows that total domestic industrial employment dropped to a ten-year low of 6.6 million workers.
Echoes From the Auto Sector and the Mercedes Precedent
Stihl is not alone in challenging the post-war labor consensus. The current debate was reignited amid a broader economic crisis when Mercedes-Benz supervisory board chief Martin Brudermüller called for a return to a 40-hour workweek for the same compensation. While the 35-hour workweek remains the standard across tariff-bound companies in the German automotive sector, it holds no statutory mandate under federal law.
That corporate intervention triggered swift pushback. The powerful labor union IG Metall organized nationwide protests across Mercedes-Benz facilities in direct defiance of the board’s proposal.
Heading Into Tough Autumn Tariff Talks
With collective bargaining negotiations for the metal and electrical industries scheduled to kick off in the autumn, business leaders are explicitly targeting the union’s foundational policy. Stihl directed his demands squarely at IG Metall, asserting that the union bears the responsibility for making necessary concessions to keep domestic plants competitive.
Nikolas Stihl, Supervisory Board Chair, Stihl, added that if they are already heading in the direction of lost industrial jobs, then they really ought to do everything now to stop the bleeding.
Stihl voiced skepticism regarding the union’s central headquarters in Frankfurt, accusing leadership there of operating under entrenched and ideological positions. By contrast, he expressed more confidence in pragmatic, rank-and-file representatives who maintain closer contact with factory floors and understand everyday operational realities.
According to federal statistics, only about ten percent of the German workforce currently operates under a 35-hour week, with full-time employees averaging 40.2 hours per week in 2025. Dismantling that benchmark within organized sectors will require dismantling provisions hard-won decades ago. Stihl acknowledged that reality, warning that reversing the policy will cause severe institutional friction after its contentious establishment.
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