German Workers' Confidence in Working Until Retirement Falters, DGB Index Shows

In eastern Germany, nearly 60% of employees worry they will face financial difficulties in old age, compared with 45% in the west, according to a sweeping new workplace survey. The figures are part of a broader assessment by the DGB-Index Gute Arbeit, based on responses from roughly 28,000 people collected between 2022 and 2026. Only 53% of all workers said they are confident they can keep working without health limitations until they reach the statutory retirement age. Four in ten do not believe they will manage, and one in four already expects to become unable to work before retiring.

The doubts are most acute in physically demanding occupations. Among workers in sanitary and heating trades, 72% question whether they will last until retirement. The percentage is 71% in nursing, 67% in elderly care, 66% in building construction, and 57% among educators. Heavy manual labour, noise, and time pressure are the main strains cited. “This is a bitter finding,” said Yasmin Fahimi, chair of the German Federation of Trade Unions (DGB). She called for better working conditions and dignified transitions into retirement instead of any further increase in the retirement age.

That call runs directly counter to proposals put forward in June by Germany’s pension commission. It recommended linking the retirement age to life expectancy starting in 2032. Under that plan, the threshold would rise to 67.5 by 2041 and to 68 by 2051. The commission also proposed scrapping the pension without deductions after 45 years of contributions. Public opposition is strong: the ARD-DeutschlandTREND survey from July found 63% reject any link to life expectancy, and 70% want to keep the 45-year rule. Overall, 52% of Germans distrust current pension policy. On the employer side, Rainer Dulger, president of the Confederation of German Employers, has gone further, demanding not only a tie to life expectancy but also the abolition of the so-called “pension at 63.”

Separately, a parallel government plan to reintroduce mandatory sick notes from day one of illness — and eliminate phone-in sick certifications — has ignited a new quarrel. A Civey poll conducted on July 2 and 3 shows the country split: 49% in favour, 42% opposed, with parents particularly critical. Daniel Graeber, an economist at the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), warned the measure could backfire. “Requiring a doctor’s note from day one may actually increase absenteeism,” he said, because more medical visits could lead to more infections. Graeber noted that phone-based sick notes account for only 1% of all sick-leave certificates. Anja Piel, a DGB executive board member, fears overloaded doctor surgeries and a rise in presenteeism — people working while ill.

Employers have gained some legal backing. On July 3, the Cologne Regional Labour Court (Landesarbeitsgericht Köln) strengthened their position in cases where a sick-note’s timing appears suspicious — for example, if it coincides closely with a workplace conflict. The ruling could make it easier for firms to challenge questionable certifications.

Taken together, the survey data and policy fights paint a picture of a workforce under strain and a retirement system facing growing scepticism from all sides. The gap between what employees believe they can endure and what the system, as currently configured, expects of them has rarely been wider.

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