Overview

• The government has launched a social partner dialogue on the draft Working Time Act that replaces the daily eight-hour limit with a 48-hour weekly maximum and mandates electronic time recording for all employees.
• The DGB has insisted on legally binding digital logging and strict enforcement measures to protect workers without collective agreements from potential schedule abuses.
• The CDA wants to preserve daily rest periods for physically demanding sectors like care, rescue services, construction and hospitality under the new weekly cap.
• Federal statistics show that about eleven percent of employees currently work beyond their contracted hours, highlighting the need for accurate time tracking.
• A Hans-Böckler-Stiftung study warns that accident risk rises dramatically after eight hours of work, strengthening calls for health and safety safeguards in any reform.