Family Minister Karin Prien (CDU) welcomed the proposed debate on abolishing the statutory right to part‑time work at the upcoming CDU party conference. “Considering the demographic trend and its impact on the economy, I think it is appropriate to discuss this motion at the party conference” she told newspapers of the Funke Media Group on Monday. “I also see this as a matter of women’s economic independence”.
Prien also stressed that part‑time work remains essential for many families. “The statutory right to part‑time work is crucial for professionals who, alongside their jobs, must care for children, look after relatives or further their education part‑time” she said. “The MIT’s motion to abolish this right is even more relevant to me as Federal Minister for Women’s Affairs, because women are disproportionately represented in part‑time employment”.
Opposition came from the FDP, which rejected the initiative. “Eliminating the right to part‑time would be symbolic and symptomatic politics that does nothing to address the problem’s core” FDP Deputy Chair Henning Höne told the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland on Thursday.
He pointed out that to enable more people to work full time, financial relief through lower social contributions and taxes, combined with better childcare arrangements, is the more effective strategy. “Many people would like to work more than part‑time. But first, the financial step from part‑time to full time is too little to be worthwhile, because the generous state taxes away the additional effort” he explained. “Second, childcare options in our country are often unreliable and underdeveloped, so people cannot rely on them and therefore must work less”.
The Mittelstands‑ und Wirtschaftsunion (MIT) of the CDU has submitted a motion for the upcoming party conference to abolish the existing statutory right to part‑time work. The motion does, however, preserve exceptions for child care and for individuals who care for relatives.
