climate change
Family entrepreneurs reject siestas for employees
A worker takes a break on the grounds of the State Horticultural Show. In view of the high temperatures in summer, medical officers encourage the introduction of a siesta working method. photo
© Uwe Anspach/dpa
Working in the morning, resting in the heat – that could make hot summers in Germany more bearable. Many people from Spain know the siesta. But employers don’t think that’s a good idea.
The President of the Association of Family Entrepreneurs, Marie-Christine Ostermann, has a heatSiesta for employees in Germany rejected. “When the temperatures are high, employers are already called upon by occupational safety regulations to take measures to ensure that work is tolerable. I don’t see the need for a nationwide, possibly legally stipulated siesta in the summer,” Ostermann told the Düsseldorf “Rheinische Post”.
“Models such as trust-based work and flexitime offer the opportunity in many jobs, where this is possible in terms of the work process, to start work early on hot days in order to make optimal use of the cooler hours in the morning. True to the motto : The early bird catches the coolest worm,” said Ostermann.
According to the association, it represents the economic and political interests of 180,000 family businesses in Germany who employ eight million employees who are subject to social security contributions.
Yesterday there was a discussion about a longer lunch break in Germany due to the heat. “When it’s hot, we should be guided by the way southern countries work: getting up early, working productively in the morning and taking a siesta at noon is a concept that we should adopt in the summer months,” said the chairman of the Federal Association of Physicians in the Public Health Service ( BVÖGD), Johannes Nießen, the editorial network Germany (RND).
“Siesta in the heat is certainly not a bad suggestion,” wrote Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach on Twitter. However, the SPD politician does not see a need for politics in the question.