Latest news with #Sozialdemokraten
The Independent
a day ago
- Business
- The Independent
German minimum wage set to rise by about 14% over the next 18 months
Germany's minimum wage is set to rise by about 14% over the next 18 months under an agreement that appears to defuse a potentially divisive issue for the new government. A commission in which employers and labor unions are represented recommended on Friday that the minimum wage rise from its current 12.82 euros ($15) per hour to 13.90 euros at the beginning of 2026 and 14.60 euros a year later. The head of the panel, Christiane Schönefeld, said it faced 'a particular challenge this year in view of the stagnating economy and the uncertain forecasts.' She said it conducted 'very difficult talks, which were complicated further by the expectations expressed in public.' Germany, which has Europe 's biggest economy, has had a national minimum wage since 2015. It was introduced at the insistence of the center-left Social Democrats, who were then — as they are now now — the junior partners in a conservative-led government. It started off at 8.50 euros per hour, but the independent commission reviews its level regularly. There has been one political intervention, however: under then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a Social Democrat, the government in 2022 ordered an increase to 12 euros an hour, fulfilling a campaign pledge by Scholz. In their campaign for this year's election, the Social Democrats called for an increase to 15 euros. New Chancellor Friedrich Merz 's conservative bloc strongly opposed another government-ordered raise. Labor Minister Bärbel Bas, a leading Social Democrat, said she would implement the commission's proposal. She said she 'can live well with it.' 'Of course we wanted more for people in this country,' she told reporters. But she praised the panel for reaching consensus on an increase, 'because it looked for a long time as though we wouldn't get an agreement at all, and then of course we would have had to talk in the coalition about how to deal with this.'
LBCI
27-05-2025
- General
- LBCI
Germany shifts tone on Israel over 'incomprehensible' Gaza carnage
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered his most severe rebuke of Israel to date on Tuesday, criticizing massive air strikes on Gaza as no longer justified by the need to fight Hamas and "no longer comprehensible." The message, delivered from a press conference in Finland, reflects a broader shift in public opinion but also a greater willingness from top-ranking German politicians to criticize Israel's conduct since the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas. There was similar criticism from Merz's foreign minister Johann Wadephul and calls among his junior coalition partner, the Social Democrats, to halt arms exports to Israel or else risk German complicity in war crimes.
Japan Times
27-05-2025
- General
- Japan Times
Germany shifts tone on Israel over 'incomprehensible' Gaza carnage
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered his most severe rebuke of Israel to date on Tuesday, criticizing massive airstrikes on Gaza as no longer justified by the need to fight Hamas and "no longer comprehensible." The message, delivered from a news conference in Finland, reflects a broader shift in public opinion but also a greater willingness from top-ranking German politicians to criticize Israel's conduct since the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas. There was similar criticism from Merz's foreign minister Johann Wadephul and calls among his junior coalition partner, the Social Democrats, to halt arms exports to Israel or else risk German complicity in war crimes. While not a complete rupture, the shift in tone is significant in a country whose leadership follows a policy of special responsibility for Israel, known as the Staatsraeson, due to the legacy of the Nazi Holocaust. Germany, along with the United States, has been one of Israel's staunchest supporters, but Merz's words come as the European Union is reviewing its Israel policy and Britain, France and Canada also threatened "concrete actions" over Gaza. "The massive military strikes by the Israelis in the Gaza Strip no longer reveal any logic to me. How they serve the goal of confronting terror. ... In this respect, I view this very, very critically," Merz said in Turku, Finland. "I am also not among those who said it first. ... But it seemed and seems to me that the time has come when I must say publicly, (that) what is currently happening is no longer comprehensible." German Chancellor Friedrich Merz speaks during a joint news conference in Turku, Finland, on Tuesday. | AFP-Jiji The comments are particularly striking given that Merz won elections in February promising to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on German soil in defiance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Merz also has hanging in the chancellery a picture of Zikim beach, where Hamas fighters arrived on boats during their rampage in 2023 that killed around 1,200 people. The Chancellor plans to speak to Netanyahu this week, as attacks on Gaza killed dozens in recent days and its population of 2 million is at risk of famine. He did not reply to a question about German weapons exports to Israel, and a government official told a briefing that this was a matter for a security council presided over by Merz. Israel's ambassador to Berlin, Ron Prosor, acknowledged German concerns on Tuesday but made no commitments. "When Friedrich Merz raises this criticism of Israel, we listen very carefully because he is a friend,' Prosor told the ZDF broadcaster. Merz's comments come on top of a groundswell of opposition to Israel's actions. A survey by Civey, published in the Tagesspiegel newspaper this week, showed 51% of Germans opposed weapons exports to Israel. More broadly, while 60% of Israelis have a positive or very positive opinion of Germany, only 36% of people in Germany view Israel positively, and 38% view it negatively, a survey by the Bertelsmann Foundation found in May. This represents a notable change from the last survey in 2021, when 46% of Germans had a positive opinion of Israel. Only a quarter of Germans recognize a special responsibility toward the state of Israel, while 64% of Israelis believe Germany has a special obligation. In another striking rebuke of Israel, Germany's commissioner for antisemitism Felix Klein this week called for a discussion about Berlin's stance on Israel, saying German support after the Holocaust could not justify everything Israel was doing. Israeli historian Moshe Zimmermann said popular opinion in Germany toward Israel has reacted the same way as in other countries. "The difference is in the political elites — the political elite is still under the influence of the lessons of WWII in a very one-dimensional way: 'Jews were our victims during WWII, so we have to take sides with the Jews wherever they are and whatever they do,'" he said. "You can feel it in the reaction of the new foreign minister, Wadephul, and indirectly the fact that Merz didn't repeat his promise to invite Netanyahu. This is an unprecedented situation where the pressure from below is forcing the political class to reconsider."
Al Arabiya
27-05-2025
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Germany shifts tone on Israel over ‘incomprehensible' Gaza massacre
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered his most severe rebuke of Israel to date on Tuesday, criticizing massive airstrikes on Gaza as no longer justified by the need to fight Hamas and 'no longer comprehensible.' The message, delivered from a press conference in Finland, reflects a broader shift in public opinion but also a greater willingness from top-ranking German politicians to criticize Israel's conduct since the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas. There was similar criticism from Merz's foreign minister Johann Wadephul and calls among his junior coalition partner, the Social Democrats, to halt arms exports to Israel or else risk German complicity in war crimes. While not a complete rupture, the shift in tone is significant in a country whose leadership follows a policy of special responsibility for Israel, known as the Staatsraeson, due to the legacy of the Nazi Holocaust. Germany, along with the United States, has been one of Israel's staunchest supporters, but Merz's words come as the European Union is reviewing its Israel policy and Britain, France and Canada also threatened 'concrete actions' over Gaza. 'The massive military strikes by the Israelis in the Gaza Strip no longer reveal any logic to me. How they serve the goal of confronting terror. ... In this respect, I view this very, very critically,' Merz said in Turku, Finland. 'I am also not among those who said it first ... But it seemed and seems to me that the time has come when I must say publicly, (that) what is currently happening is no longer comprehensible.' The comments are particularly striking given that Merz won elections in February promising to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on German soil in defiance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Merz also has hanging in the chancellery a picture of Zikim beach, where Hamas fighters arrived on boats during their rampage in 2023 that killed around 1,200 people. The Chancellor plans to speak to Netanyahu this week, as attacks on Gaza killed dozens in recent days and its population of 2 million is at risk of famine. He did not reply to a question about German weapons exports to Israel, and a government official told a briefing that this was a matter for a security council presided over by Merz. Israel's ambassador to Berlin, Ron Prosor, acknowledged German concerns on Tuesday but made no commitments. 'When Friedrich Merz raises this criticism of Israel, we listen very carefully because he is a friend,' Prosor told the ZDF broadcaster. Pressure from below? Merz's comments come on top of a groundswell of opposition to Israel's actions. A survey by Civey, published in the Tagesspiegel newspaper this week, showed 51 percent of Germans opposed weapons exports to Israel. More broadly, while 60 percent of Israelis have a positive or very positive opinion of Germany, only 36 percent of people in Germany view Israel positively, and 38 percent view it negatively, a survey by the Bertelsmann Foundation found in May. This represents a notable change from the last survey in 2021, when 46 percent of Germans had a positive opinion of Israel. Only a quarter of Germans recognize a special responsibility towards the state of Israel, while 64 percent of Israelis believe Germany has a special obligation. In another striking rebuke of Israel, Germany's commissioner for antisemitism Felix Klein this week called for a discussion about Berlin's stance on Israel, saying German support after the Holocaust could not justify everything Israel was doing. Israeli historian Moshe Zimmermann said popular opinion in Germany towards Israel has reacted the same way as in other countries. 'The difference is in the political elites - the political elite is still under the influence of the lessons of WWII in a very one-dimensional way: 'Jews were our victims during WWII, so we have to take sides with the Jews wherever they are and whatever they do,'' he said. 'You can feel it in the reaction of the new foreign minister, Wadephul, and indirectly the fact that Merz didn't repeat his promise to invite Netanyahu. This is an unprecedented situation where the pressure from below is forcing the political class to reconsider.'
