Overview
- At a CDU event in Baden-Württemberg, Chancellor Friedrich Merz cited an average of 14.5 sick days per worker and asked whether that level is necessary.
- Merz urged people to work more to raise output and pointed to Switzerland, saying Swiss workers put in roughly 200 additional hours per year.
- Russia’s State Duma chair Vyacheslav Volodin responded on his channel that Germans should think about self-preservation and rely only on themselves.
- Volodin claimed German budget choices favor arms for Ukraine over healthcare and social support and blamed leadership for recession and falling living standards.
- Germany’s economy has stagnated for about three years, with Destatis reporting a 0.2% GDP decline in 2024 linked by coverage to high energy prices after reduced Russian gas supplies.