SPIEGEL ONLINE: Mr. Ritz, after a long struggle, the Federal Cabinet has decided the right to temporary part-time. What brings employees the so-called bridge part-time?
Sebastian Ritz: You can easily reduce your working hours. So, if a worker wants to move from full to half-time, it's enough to submit a request three months in advance. This gives him the opportunity to reduce his work for one to five years and then return to his full potential. Special reasons, such as raising a child or caring for a loved one, do not have to be present in this case.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Does that apply to all employees?
Ritz: There are some conditions: you must have been employed at the company for at least six months and have more than 45 employees. If the company has up to 200 employees, only a part of the workforce is allowed to use temporary part-time work. From 200 employees there are no more restrictions.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Can the employer reject the request for limited part-time work?
Ritz: Basically, this is only possible if he can prove that the so-called bridge part-time would significantly affect the organization, the work processes or the safety in the company or disproportionate costs would - if, for example, a specialist or manager has the skills and knowledge that the employer can not easily replace with other employees. If, for example, assembly dates can no longer be met because of the part-time request, a rejection is also conceivable.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: What consequences will the right to temporary part-time have for companies?
Ritz: It will change the personnel planning strongly. Corporate and management must become more flexible, they must somehow compensate for the loss of time, either by placing more strain on the existing workforce, or - depending on the legal intention - hiring additional staff for a certain period of time.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: But you can only set this for a limited time?
Ritz: At least you can not give every newly hired colleague a permanent contract. But which candidate wants to be temporarily suspended? The top people certainly not. The search for a suitable replacement for the duration of the bridge part time should therefore become a major problem for many companies. Entrepreneurs can still manage with temporary workers, but these may in principle be only 18 months in a company in use.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: In addition to the bridge part-time, there is another significant change: Employees who already work part-time, can ask for an extension of their working time. What do you have to consider?
Ritz: Part-time workers can already announce today that they would like to increase their contractual working hours. But there must be a job for that. And the candidate must be just as suitable as other applicants. This must also be compatible with operational reasons and working time wishes of other employees.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: What then brings the new regulation?
Ritz: So far, the employee always had to prove that there is a vacancy and that he is suitable for it. From January, the burden of proof turns around: then employers have to prove that there is no job vacancy, that the part-time worker does not have the same qualifications as other applicants and that company reasons speak against the increase.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: What are the consequences for companies?
Ritz: If employers want to recruit new colleagues because they are better acquainted with digitization or think more innovatively than other colleagues, this can lead to problems - because they have to favor those employees with the same qualifications who want to switch from part-time to full-time. Here, too, social protection is above the performance idea. But so far, companies have managed that mostly by themselves. At least I do not know that there were many lawsuits.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: What if two part-time employees want a full-time position, but there are not enough jobs?
Ritz: In such cases, probably the employee would get the full-time job, whose interests are socially worthy of protection. This means that one would weigh the typical social criteria such as age, length of service, maintenance obligations or severe disability and then decide in favor of the employee who claims the higher social protection.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: How much does the right to return full time for the equality of women?
Ritz: It's the right tool. Most women reduce their working hours after parental leave. With the new law, the government makes it much easier for women to work for a while and then work full-time again. This is extremely useful, especially in times of skill shortages. But the bridge part-time can only be a tool for more equality. The government should make it easier for women to get back into work.
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Which proposal do you have?
Ritz: There must be a lot more kindergartens that cost less money and have more flexible opening hours. The legal right to a Kitaplatz, introduced a few years ago, is a good first step. Overall, however, the state would have to create more service-oriented offers to simplify the balancing act between working and working life for working families.
