Is Germany's eight-hour workday under threat?

The town of Leuna, situated in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, is a major chemical industry center hosting over 100 companies. Among these businesses is the Finnish biotechnology firm UPM, which recently constructed a biorefinery for wood-based chemicals in Leuna. One of UPM's job vacancies involves a chemical technician responsible for implementing new facilities.

However, applicants must be prepared to work 12-hour shifts. Is this practice lawful? According to German law, standard working hours should not exceed eight hours per day. To extend this period to ten hours, workers must receive extra compensation for overtime and must have at least 11 hours of rest between shifts. Business organizations and conservative parties, including the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU), have long advocated for changes to these rules to enhance flexibility.

Rainer Dulger, president of the Confederation of German Employers' Associations (BDA), refers to the European Working Time Directive, which permits a maximum weekly working time of 48 hours. Businesses claim they could better utilize their workforce if the existing rules were more flexible, especially in industries with seasonal variations, such as tourism, or in project-based work or during irregular workload peaks, like in the restaurant sector.

The Working Hours Act, originating in the era of fax machines and rotary-dial phones, Dulger asserts, is outdated and does not account for modern technologies like laptops or childcare hours. In their 2025 coalition agreement, the CDU/CSU and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) pledged to amend the Working Hours Act. The SPD had initially favored leaving the law unchanged but ultimately agreed to the CDU/CSU's proposals.

The Social Democrats noted that longer working hours are already permissible in exceptional circumstances, such as emergency services, healthcare, and security services. Power plant, refinery, and chemical industry workers are also permitted to work up to 12 hours consecutively. Even Chancellor Friedrich Merz was unaware of this exception until recently.

Following a visit to the UPM refinery in Leuna, he was surprised to learn about the continuous 12-hour shift schedule, which resulted from the works council's approval. Merz expressed surprise at discovering that workers enjoy three-day work weeks and claimed that this demonstrates the advantages of relaxing the Working Hours Act.

Merz stated, "Working more than eight hours is not exploitation. Rather, it can be a good opportunity to organize working hours more flexibly—both for businesses and for the people working there." However, there is opposition to amending the Working Hours Act within the SPD and from trade unions, who argue that longer workdays would negatively impact employees' health and disadvantage those with family and caregiving responsibilities.

The Labor and Social Affairs Ministry drafted an initial reform proposal in June 2026, which included conditions like collective bargaining agreements, health and safety regulations, and electronic tracking of working hours. However, the draft was rejected by the SPD and business organizations, with the BDA expressing mistrust in the proposal.

The German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH) also criticized the draft, calling it a breach of previous commitments. The reform process has been in limbo since then. At the Employers Day event, Merz expressed optimism about potential progress and suggested that the new SPD Labor Minister, Alexander Schweitzer, might share his perspective.

In early October, the SPD published a paper on reforming working hours, titled "Self-determination, Not Deregulation." The paper emphasizes the need for joint decision-making between employers and employees regarding working hours.