Germany: maximum working time can rise to 12 hours per day in ‘strategic’ sectors until the end of June 2020

On 09 April, Germany’s Federal Employment and Social Affairs and Health Ministries published the details of a new ordinance authorizing companies to raise the daily legal working time limit for employees to 12 hours per day and the weekly limit to 60 hours. The new measures are valid from 0 8 April until the end of June 2020. This ordinance is just one element of a vast economic support programme that was approved on 25 March and as such had the Bundestag’s agreement in principle. However details of the measure still needed clarification and this has now been done. While employers are welcoming the measure, trade unions argue it is ineffective and harmful for employee health.