Fair contracts for the German economy
Rheda-Wiedenbrück, May 20.05.2020th, XNUMX - The Tönnies group of companies is bringing into play a consistent and constructive new regulation of work contracts in dialogue with the Labor Ministers Karl-Josef Laumann and Hubertus Heil. Tönnies proposes a fair and economically sensible solution to the federal government. "We need a fair work contract with clear structures and responsibilities throughout the German economy," says Clemens Tönnies, the company's managing partner.
"The corona pandemic is revealing strengths and weaknesses in all areas of the economy," says Tönnies. “With our structures in the areas of work and living, we managed to keep the virus out of the company during the first wave of the pandemic. This is also a credit to our work over the past ten years, in which we have consistently further developed the work contract and the accommodation of the temporary Eastern European employees. Apparently not everyone did that. Now a nationwide standard is needed that everyone has to adhere to.”
Specifically, the entrepreneur proposes five points:
- Abolition of work contracts based on the A1 employee posting. That means: German labor law and German social security for all employees.
- Abolition of opaque sub-sub constructions. Only work contracts between 2 partners remain permissible: client and contractor.
- Extension of the direct liability of the client to the circumstances of the living space, the client is liable for decent and economically fair accommodation for all employees.
- The design of the living space conditions and the work contracts in relation to the fair treatment of the employees is monitored by an independent body / certification organization (TÜV/SGS or similar).
- Raising the statutory minimum wage in the industry to €12,00 (gross/hour).
Tönnies offers the federal government to contribute his technical expertise to the legislative process. “In our cooperation with, for example, the Dortmund Coming, the social institute of the Catholic Church, the Sögeler Weg and the Round Table in Rheda-Wiedenbrück, we have learned and improved a lot about housing, work and integration. Now it's time for a realignment with clear structures and responsibilities for the entire economy," says Tönnies behind the intention of the federal government.
But Tönnies also qualifies: “A blanket criticism of the contract for work, on the other hand, is not justified, after all, production based on the division of labor is a backbone of the economy in Germany. To ensure equal competition, we need clear rules for the entire German economy, in construction, online mail order, logistics and shipbuilding. Since work contracts are used almost everywhere, we need a legislative standard here,” demands Clemens Tönnies.
A general ban on work contracts in just one sector, the meat industry, would result in major economic risks for German agriculture. “We depend on hard-working people who make our domestic production here possible in the first place. A unilateral German ban poses the risk that animal husbandry, slaughtering and processing will no longer be competitive here and will be replaced by producers in neighboring European countries such as Poland, Romania or Spain.
