In the light of COVID-19 pandemic, over half a million businesses in Germany have opted for short-time work aka ‘Kurzarbeit’. Which means temporary reduction of the regular working time as it minimises the personnel costs despite other benefits such as maintaining workforce and preventing layoffs.
Previously, Germany’s economy ministry stated that there will be no jobs lost due to the pandemic. Contradictory, unemployment has risen drastically surpassing the global recession in 2008. German unemployment is estimated to rise beyond 3 million in 2020 as the pandemic strains the economy and removes more people from their work. An IAB research claims that the expected economic output of Germany is all set to shrink by 8.4% this year, making it the worst recession after World War II.