Rentenreform: Deutsche Banken befürchten Ende der Altersteilzeit in der Branche

Deutsche Banken are worried that a key tool for restructuring and workforce reduction - the block model of partial retirement - will be lost in Germany's planned pension reforms. The idea stems from a proposal by the Age Security Commission during the pension reform in Germany, which states that the block model of partial retirement should no longer be possible.

The block model allows employees to work full-time in the first half of the partial retirement period and not at all in the second half, each spanning several years. If this model were indeed abolished, private banks would essentially lose "the abolition of partial retirement" as 99 percent of their employees use it, explained Carsten Rogge-Strang, CEO of the private banks' employers' association to Bloomberg News.

The association includes major banks like Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Aareal Bank, and Hamburg Commercial Bank. "While it is legitimate to consider partial retirement in the pension reform, abolishing the block model would not have positive effects and would take away an important instrument for social, manageable workforce restructuring from industries with high transformation dynamics," he said.

In a letter to the German Ministry for Labor and Social Affairs, the banks' employers expressed their concerns. The banking sector faces significant cuts in the coming years due to consolidation and the growing use of artificial intelligence, which could potentially allow European banks to reduce their workforce by up to a fifth in the short term, according to Morgan Stanley analysts.

However, Rogge-Strang noted that the abolition of the block model would not have positive effects and would eliminate an important tool for socially acceptable workforce restructuring in industries with high transformation dynamics. The Age Security Commission also recommended raising the retirement age for accessing partial retirement from 55 to 58 years.