Philipp Türmer, the chairman of the Juso, accused CDU politician Friedrich Merz of disregarding the needs of employees by strongly pushing for the implementation of a four-day work week. Speaking to the “Redaktion”netzwerk Deutschland” Türmer stated that Merz does not recognize the current state of exhaustion in the country; rather, he exacerbates it. He argued that campaigning for a standard eight-hour workday is not a signal of progress, but an insult. According to Türmer, long working hours are essential to prevent employees from becoming disabled at age 50 due to burnout or physical deterioration, and workers cannot be left at the whim of their employers. He condemned possibilities for working nearly 13 hours straight, calling it a profound step backward in social policy.
Instead of making demands of others, Türmer advised that Merz should first focus on increasing his own working hours. “Given the administrative failures his government produces daily, he should first direct this demand upon himself” said the head of the SPD youth organization. He concluded that the 42 million workers in Germany have already borne the brunt of reductions during previous economic crises. Therefore, when Merz calls for a willingness to change at the DGB Federal Congress, Türmer dismissed it as a mocking demand.
