I am indeed speechless today from the German …creativity! First the BILD newspaper, now DER SPIEGEL magazine featuring the German Chancellor, Ms Angela Merkel. In an rare outbreak of populism the conservative politician blasted “Greece and demanded that Athens raise the retirement age and reduce vacation days!”
“We can’t have a common currency where some get lots of vacation time and others very little” she said.
Now, where did she get this data is a real miracle!
While in Germany employees enjoy min. 24 – max. 30 days per year (public holidays excluded) Greeks employees can hardly come up to 27 paid vacations per year.
And Angela Merkel seems to forget that even the North of her country has much less vacation than the German South (especially Bayern) where religious holidays send home millions of workers. Unless we’re talking about ‘Christian-Democrat” equality…
As for the retirement age increase, Merkel has apparently copy-pasted a statement by her former political partner Guido Westerwelle. ( I know I’ve posted about, but too lazy to search the link right now). Anyway Merkel said: “It is also important that people in countries like Greece, Spain and Portugal are not able to retire earlier than in Germany — that everyone exerts themselves more or less equally. That is important.”
Spiegel notes:
There are indeed significant differences between retirement ages in the two countries. Greece announced reforms to its pension system in early 2010 aimed at reducing early retirement and raising the average age of retirement to 63. Incentives to keep workers in the labor market beyond 65 have likewise been adopted. Germany voted in 2007 to raise the retirement age from 65 to 67 over the next several years.
In January of this year, Merkel proposed a “pact for competitiveness” that would force EU members to coordinate their national policies on issues like tax, wages and retirement ages. A watered-down version of the pact was agreed upon at a summit in March.
The moment Angela Merkel appeals also for equality in the state services like health care, education, customer service, etc according to a German-Style -standards for all folks within Europe I may consider applauding her proposals. But so far, I, the once unconditional EU-supporter, watch me mutating into a EU-sceptical – slowly but gradually….
Full Article in SPIEGEL English Edition
And something that everyone seems to forget when talking about the “excessive holidays” Greeke get, is that when a public holiday falls on a weekend, the following Monday is not given off in lieu.
That means that, for instance, when 25 & 26 December fall on a Saturday & Sunday Greek basically get no time off for Christmas unless they take from their holiday entitlement. Elsewhere, Christmas and Boxing Day falling at the weekend means four straight days off in a row, wihtout having to take from their vacation allowance.
But then, I guess it’s much easier to think in cliches (lazy Greeks) than it is to actually look at the facts – especially when you have a political point to make.
well said! Clishes is the easy way when politicians and journalists are too lazy to think (about the lazy Greeks).
thanks for commenting!
Sorry, but what does the EU to have with Angela Merkel? she’s the German chancellor, not the EU….! The EU has come up with a plan to lend Greece billions of euro – even though Greece had not only broken all EU rules on sound public budgets, but also LIED shamelessly about the state of its public finances…
Angela Merkel is the person that represents the strongest economy in the EU. Therefore, although she is indeed not the EU, she is the one who has the strongest say in the EU. I think it is easy to imagine what could happen if she and her government decide to withdraw from the euro.
The EU has come up with a plan to save Greece because it is in its interest to do so. Not out of mercy or compassion!