Heaving the Anchor of Leisure: Ifo President Urges Scrapping of Public Holiday for National Boost
President advocates for annulment of scheduled vacations
Chilling the bubbly and swapping the beach for the office, folks! The big cheeses at the Munich Ifo Institute, led by its President, Clemens Fuest, have the summer sun on their backs - and your day off in their sights. Holidays are in the hot seat as Fuest has called for the axing of a public holiday, with an eye on improving the nation's defense and infrastructure.
Spilling the tea in an address on Friday, Fuest declared that sacrifices are necessary to make room for these critical endeavors. "With fewer workers available than ever before, these spending programs may result in delayed implementations of investments and a drain of labor forces from other sectors, leaving them high and dry," he said.
It's not all doom and gloom, though. The elimination of a public holiday could potentially pump around eight billion euros into the economy each year, according to Fuest's estimations. He, unfortunately, didn't drop a hint about which day's sunshine we might have to forego.
The war of words has been raging for weeks now, with Fuest's initial proposal making waves in March. The suggestion centered around the reform of the debt brake and the introduction of a new infrastructure special fund[5]. Joining him in this crusade was fellow economist Monika Schnitzer, who echoed the sentiment in "Der Spiegel."
As for potential candidates for holiday elimination, the Institute of the German Economy (IW) provided some insights. An extra workday may very well rake in between 5 and 8.6 billion euros for the nation's GDP, all depending on the math[2]. But before you start checking your calendar for missing days, keep in mind that there's no current talk about cancelling any public holidays in Germany[1][4]. The ongoing discussion in the German political sphere centers around coalition agreements, immigration, taxation, and climate goals, but nary a murmur about holiday cancellations[5].
Time will tell if Germany is ready to trade sunny skies for concrete progress. The question remains: which beloved holiday might just have to sacrifice itself for the greater good?
[1] ntv.de - Schedule of public holidays in Germany for 2025: Good Friday, Easter Monday, etc.[2] ntv.de - An extra workday adds 5-8.6 billion euros to the German GDP[3] ntv.de - Berlin gains Victory in Europe Day as public holiday on May 8, 2025[4] einestages.de - All public holidays in Germany for 2025[5] ntv.de - Coalition agreements, immigration, taxation, and climate goals top the political agenda in Germany[6] AFP news agency - Ifo president calls for cancellation of public holiday to boost economic output
- The Munich Ifo Institute's President, Clemens Fuest, has suggested scrapping a public holiday as part of his employment policy, aiming to inject up to eight billion euros into the economy annually.
- In a fiery debate, Fuest's proposal, initially made in March, has also been advocated by economist Monika Schnitzer, with the reform of the debt brake and the introduction of an infrastructure special fund being key points.
- Despite the ongoing discussion, there is currently no talk about cancelling any public holidays in Germany, according to various reports.
- If a public holiday is cancelled, it could potentially boost the nation's GDP by between 5 to 8.6 billion euros, according to estimates by the Institute of the German Economy (IW).
