Overview
- The Bundeskabinett adopted the Mindestlohnkommission’s two-step plan, setting €13.90 per hour from January 1, 2026 and €14.60 in 2027, with no additional Bundestag or Bundesrat vote required.
- The DGB estimates a full-time worker would earn about €190 more gross per month in 2026 and about €310 more in 2027, amounting to roughly €3,700 gross annually, with an aggregate wage boost of around €5.7 billion over two years.
- Social associations SoVD and VdK call the increase insufficient given living costs, noting it falls short of the coalition’s signaled €15 target for 2026.
- Legal scholar Christian Picker contends the commission strayed from the law’s tariff-wage benchmark by orienting toward a 60% median-wage metric, claiming the recommendation and resulting regulation are invalid.
- Picker and reporters say employers may test the increase in court, and if judges agree, the current €12.82 rate could remain in effect for some employers until rulings are issued.