The trained master hairdresser Zuhra Visnjic set up her own salon “Zukis Style” in Remscheid nine years ago. Rising personnel and energy costs are causing problems for the entrepreneur and mother of three children. She feels let down by politics because even though she and her husband, a bus driver in three shifts, work a lot and hard for their money, there is little left over at the end of the month.
The family has a monthly net salary of 3,700 to 3,899 euros. After deducting all fixed costs, a maximum of 800 euros remains, reports Visnjic on the ARD talk show “Hart aber Fair”. It is hardly possible for the family of five to go to the cinema, the theater or eat out. Her father, who worked in Germany for 40 years, always told the entrepreneur as a child: “In Germany, workers are always valued and honored.” That is no longer the case.
When “tough but fair” moderator Louis Klamroth asked the group whether politicians understood that, classic rhetorical phrases followed. SPD State Minister Carsten Schneider, for example, thanks the woman for her courage in starting a company, party newcomer Sahra Wagenknecht complains about the federal government’s wrong energy policy and CDU General Secretary Carsten Linnemann wants to abolish citizens’ money in its current form.
“Ms Visnjic, will it help you if citizens’ money is abolished?” asks Klamroth. “No,” says the master hairdresser shortly.
But what would be helpful? Here are three suggestions.
1. There is a need for an antidote to the increased cost of living
In his New Year’s speech, Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised that employees in Germany should have more net of their gross through tax relief. That sounds good and right, but only a few people benefit from it.
On the one hand, employees pay less taxes on their salaries. At the same time, however, the cost of living has risen significantly.
For example:
- health insurance contributions have increased,
- energy prices have remained at a high level,
- The CO2 tax has been increased, so that petrol, gas and heating oil have also become significantly more expensive
- and the VAT has been adjusted to 19 percent in the restaurant.
“The year 2024 will be very expensive for low-income families. They have little benefit from income tax relief, but the state is heavily involved in gas, electricity and fuel. That’s not fair,” says Tobias Hentze from the Cologne Institute of German Economics.
Top earners with two children in particular benefit from the tax relief. In the example calculation, one partner earns 90,000 euros a year, the other 40,000 euros. This results in a relief of 262 euros per year.
The calculation looks different for a family with one child and a gross income of 42,000 euros per year. She is not relieved, but pays 33 euros more.
The solution? An antidote to rising energy prices is needed. And that could come directly from the companies. While households receive big discounts when they sign new electricity, gas or district heating tariffs, customers with old contracts pay more. Companies could also pass on these discounts to existing customers – without much effort.
2. Tax relief is needed for the hairdressing trade
The most pressing problems facing hairdressing businesses included the “explosion in energy prices, increased costs and high taxes,” explained the Magdeburg Chamber of Crafts in an interview. Politicians must ensure that the burden is reduced. “Good wages and salaries in the hairdressing trade are only possible if customers can still afford a visit to the hairdresser,” says managing director Burghard Grupe. And further: “Only a financially sound company with sufficient staff can guarantee qualified training.”
What is particularly alarming is that in no other skilled trade is there such a great risk of drifting into the shadow economy. Low sales and low wages encourage people to offer haircuts outside the salon or to bridge financial bottlenecks through illegal practices. Illegal work quickly becomes a trivial offense here, while tax-paying hairdressing businesses suffer from low prices and rising costs and are hardly competitive.
And how could that work? Visits to the hairdresser could be deducted from income tax. “This not only creates fairness compared to other labor-intensive trades, but also serves as a lever for reducing undeclared work,” says the Central Association of the German Hairdressing Trade.
3. And… work has to be worth it!
Hairdressers and taxi drivers are at the lower end of the income scale in Germany. Working full-time, a hairdresser earns an average of 1,980 euros gross per month. The salary can vary depending on your professional experience and the hairdressing salon. But around 1,600 euros net is far too little to pay fixed costs such as rent, electricity and food. Without support from the office or a second job, it is difficult to make a living.
Increasing your salary is also important with a view to retirement provision. Because anyone who earns little during their working life will also have a bad chance in old age. “Due to the currently low pension level, most people will not receive a statutory pension above the basic security level at the end of their working life,” emphasizes the United Services Union (Verdi).
This is also why there is a clear message: work must be worth it again. Wages must rise sharply. However, customers would also feel this. The hairstyle for 12 or 15 euros is no longer available. “In order to pay a hairdresser 2,000 euros gross per month today, around 8,000 euros in sales or 50 euros per hour are required, otherwise there will be a loss,” emphasizes the initiative “Der Faire Salon”. But the hairdressing salons generally have too few customers and too much idle time, while the discount salons attract people with low prices and are seeing increasing numbers.
What would be the solution? Government support programs for small and medium-sized businesses, such as grants or tax breaks, could help hair salons overcome financial bottlenecks and invest in staff and quality.
Surf tip: Comment from Martin Limbeck – The hard-working people in our country feel let down – rightly so