Overview
- A new WSI/Hans Böckler Foundation survey of about 58,000 workers reports that roughly 51% will receive a year‑end payment, typically in November.
- Receipt is far more common in tariff-bound workplaces (77%) than in non-tariff settings (41%), reflecting a broader decline in collective bargaining coverage to about 49% in 2024.
- Payouts vary sharply by industry and region, from about €250 in Bavarian agriculture to €4,235 in North Rhine–Westphalia’s chemical sector, with high amounts also in energy (NRW), confectionery (Baden‑Württemberg), Westphalian textiles, private banks, and Deutsche Bahn.
- The bonus is fully taxable and subject to social contributions as a ‘sonstiger Bezug,’ which often leaves workers with a noticeably smaller net amount than the gross figure suggests.
- A legal right exists only via a collective or individual contract or through ‘betriebliche Übung’ after three consecutive years, and a Federal Labor Court ruling (Az. 10 AZR 116/22) has limited employers’ unilateral cuts in certain cases; some sectors with tariff agreements still pay no bonus, such as building cleaning.