Umfrage: Beschäftigte würden mehr arbeiten – Anreize wichtig

A majority of working Germans are willing to work more hours, according to a survey conducted by Appinio for the job website Indeed. However, half of the 1,000 employees questioned said they would like to take on overtime work, with nearly 20% even willing to do so permanently. Despite already working more hours than their contracts stipulate, these employees cited reasons including personal life, their own health, lack of financial incentives, and family commitments for not working even more.

Indeed experts believe that simply focusing on increasing work hours does not adequately address the need for economic performance. Many employees are prepared to go above and beyond if they can benefit from their additional work, such as through higher wages, tax perks, flexible working hours, and bonus payments. However, in practice, they often feel constrained when trying to accomplish more during their working hours.

The main reasons given were a shortage of staff, unnecessary bureaucracy, slow processes, unclear objectives, poor leadership, too many meetings, and outdated technology.

The political debate around longer working hours has left many employees feeling unmotivated, with nearly half stating they were demotivated as a result. At the same time, a third felt spurred on by the discussion. For Sondergeld, the increase in working hours is only one factor among many that can boost economic performance. Increasing productivity can be achieved through investments in infrastructure and technology, including artificial intelligence, as well as reducing bureaucracy.

By offloading time-consuming routine tasks from employees, their motivation and job satisfaction could improve.