The reform package is causing uncertainty due to fixed-term contracts without just cause: an interview with Max Leurle of ver.di

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The coalition’s reform package, presented with great fanfare, comprises a total of 34 points; one point in particular is the subject of much debate, and we have already written about it. In addition to the abolition of sick notes issued by telephone and the obligation to take sick leave from the first day of illness, there is also the issue of ‘fixed-term contracts without objective grounds’, which is important for employees.

Point 5 of the reform package puts it as follows: “For employees hired up to 31 December 2030, a fixed-term contract without objective grounds is possible for a maximum duration of up to 48 months, with the contract able to be extended up to six times. In this regard, it will also be possible to be re-hired for the first time by the same employer.”

What does this mean?

Fixed-term employment contracts are regulated by the Part-Time and Fixed-Term Employment Act (TzBfG), Section 14 – Permissibility of fixed-term contracts. This section sets out eight valid grounds for a fixed-term contract; further grounds are possible but must be well justified. If none of these objective grounds apply, the contract is referred to as a fixed-term contract without objective grounds. These are limited to two years under paragraph 2; within those two years, the fixed-term contract may be extended no more than three times. Exceptions to this rule apply to newly established companies and older employees, as set out in paragraphs 2a and 3.

The regulation now being proposed effectively repeals paragraph 2 and makes paragraph 2a the norm.

This deprives even more workers of any certainty in planning their lives over longer periods. It is impossible to make life plans with fixed-term contracts lasting more than four years. We see this in the academic sector among young academics, due to the successive fixed-term contracts permitted by the WissZeitVG.

How should we make sense of all this? We spoke to Max Leurle, trade union secretary at ver.di North Saxony, via Zoom.

Conversation with Max Leurle

Mr Leurle, thank you very much for agreeing to this interview. There is a brief – and, in my view, rather watered-down – statement from Thorben Albrecht on behalf of the DGB regarding the reform package and the individual measures, which speaks of ‘lights and shadows’. He also says that it all depends on the actual implementation of the measures. Let me put it this way: the extension of fixed-term contracts without objective grounds brings employment law closer to the provisions of the WissZeitVG, which ver.di has been fighting against for some time.
ver.di’s criticism of the entire reform package is considerably sharper. On the subject of fixed-term contracts: Of course, the scope for fixed-term contracts under the Academic Fixed-Term Contracts Act (WissZeitVG) is broader, as contracts can be of longer duration and entered into more frequently. But, unfortunately, we are, of course, moving in the direction of the WissZeitVG, and we know from studies on the subject that fixed-term contracts do not, in fact, lead to higher productivity. If employees are now to be kept in a state of uncertainty for up to 48 months, this will not lead to an economic upturn and growth, as the programme promises. I cannot, for the life of me, understand where the CDU or SPD get this assumption from. Instead, the hard-working population sees it as yet another form of harassment.

Especially as there are already exceptions in Section 14 of the TzBfG. In fact, only paragraph 2 has been deleted, the one that limited fixed-term contracts without objective grounds to two years.
Yes, these exceptions exist, and employers can use them to agree on shorter periods of employment. Furthermore, there are fixed-term contracts with valid grounds. In short: no further measures are needed! Rather, it strengthens the employers’ position of power, and that is precisely how this government measure should be understood.

Through the back door, it effectively undermines protection against dismissal.
Exactly; employers can use it as a sort of extension of the probationary period, thereby undermining protection against dismissal. As an employer, you can keep employees on probation indefinitely and are free to sack them time and again without giving any reasons.

This is also a major problem for trade union organising. We know that people on fixed-term contracts are less likely to campaign actively for better working conditions because they are afraid. After all, they are in a state of permanent dependence on the employer’s goodwill. This is a clear encroachment on our ability to organise workers into trade unions and mobilize them to campaign for good collective agreements.

It is, in particular, a problem for young workers and those starting out in their careers, who now have no job security from the outset – just as is the case in the academic sector.
Yes, many in the academic sector are already ending their university careers because the future is too uncertain. Contracts for two, three, perhaps four years. If they also have personal plans, such as starting a family, many prefer to look for work in other sectors. If the same is to apply there now, then that is particularly bad for young people, as it interferes deeply with their private lives and their plans for the future. In that case, many will ask themselves: Can I have children in this situation? Do I want to start planning a family? This government actually wants to encourage people to start families, not least because of demographic trends. However, it is not doing so with this reform package; instead, it is doing exactly the opposite.

The government also wants to promote homeownership. But you cannot get a mortgage if you are on a fixed-term contract; that has an impact on so many things. Of course, it is up to employers whether they play this card. But in the current economic downturn, won’t some of them be tempted to do so?
It will happen particularly in sectors where employers know they can easily find replacements, because the jobs are very straightforward, and the labour market pushes workers into these occupations. They can therefore play this card in many precarious jobs. I find this particularly distressing because it is yet another reform package that primarily affects those in precarious employment. It affects people who earn little and who now face even greater uncertainty in their lives as a result.

Briefly, on the subject of scrapping sick notes by telephone and requiring a doctor’s certificate from the very first day of work: what is your view on this?
We condemn this blanket suspicion towards workers. It is nothing short of harassment of the hard-working population. This is not how the federal government shows its appreciation for carers, public transport workers and those in the many sectors providing essential public services. For many, it feels like the government is giving them the middle finger.

What’s more, it’s out of touch with reality. Doctors’ surgeries are already up in arms. Everyone knows that it often makes more sense to stay in bed for a day and say the next morning, ‘Right, I’m feeling better now, I’m off to work.’

On the other hand, it has to be said that many trade union members can breathe a sigh of relief! Many collective agreements contain better provisions. Employees covered by these collective agreements are protected from the impending statutory deterioration in conditions. This shows that it is important to organise through trade unions and take control of good working conditions ourselves, rather than relying on the government.

Let’s conclude with a thought. Is it time to join a trade union, or to set up works councils, in order to conclude company agreements on working hours and sick leave?
Never before has trade union membership been so significant and worthwhile. Whether in the care sector, at university or in the many other areas where cuts are currently being made. Now is the time to stick together!

We must not bury our heads in the sand in the face of political changes, but instead organise ourselves into trade unions with our colleagues in the workplace, set up works councils or hold existing works councils to account. We must stand together politically against these reforms and organise further social protests over the coming months. The next Social Council meeting will take place on Saturday 11 July at 2 pm at the Volkshaus. It’s an open meeting for everyone! But we should also take the initiative in our workplaces. We’re happy to support you.

Mr Leurle, thank you for the interview.