Short-time Work and Short-time Work Compensation. How International Firms Survive the Corona Pandemic

Seminar paper from the year 2020 in the subject Leadership and Human Resources - Leadership, grade: 1,0, University of Applied Sciences Ludwigshafen, language: English, abstract: This paper will explain what short-time work is, whom it applies to and what requirements a company must meet. The focus of this paper will be on the use of short-time work as a way of saving companies against the background of the current corona pandemic. In this context, it is particularly important to find out what additional measures have been taken to help companies during this period and, in particular, how short-time work can be used to build a bridge for companies to survive this pandemic in the sea of economic consequences. In April, as a result of the corona pandemic, unemployment figures increased by 308,000 in Germany alone to a total of 2.65 million. Unemployment is expected to climb to more than 3 million. The economy is virtually at a standstill, orders are stagnant, the population is at home and money is no longer flowing. Cancellations of trade fairs and large-scale events, and the decline in travel, are affecting the service sector, especially in the areas of logistics, trade, gastronomy, and tourism. At the same time, foreign demand is dropping, and international supply chains are being disrupted, which impacts production in Germany. The corona pandemic is hitting companies hard and help is undoubtedly needed if jobs are to be maintained. One form of such help is short-time working. More than half of all German companies have announced short-time work. Introducing short-time work is known to safe companies and maintain jobs through difficult times like these. According to Anke Hassel, a professor of public policy at the Hertie School in Berlin, the policy is one of the reasons why Germany recovered so quickly after the 2008-9 financial crisis.