Many employees have already planned for it. When it ends up in their account, they are still happy: the holiday pay. Whether they get anything at all also depends on collective agreements.
In the private sector, almost half of employees will receive holiday pay this summer, as was the case last year. This is the result of an online survey by the internet portal Lohnspiegel.de. The exact figure has hardly changed: while the rate was 47 percent in 2023, it is now 46 percent. The portal is managed by the Economic and Social Science Institute (WSI) of the Hans Böckler Foundation.
The money is usually paid out together with the June or July salary, the WSI reported on Tuesday in Düsseldorf. For the analysis, the information from almost 68,000 employees from the beginning of May 2023 to the end of May 2024 was evaluated.
In companies covered by collective agreements, the quota is 74 percent
Whether employees receive holiday pay or not depends on several factors. “The most important factor by far is whether the company has a collective agreement,” it said. In private sector companies with collective agreements, around three quarters (74 percent) of those surveyed received holiday pay. In companies without a collective agreement, the figure was only 36 percent.
Where a collective agreement applies, basic salaries are usually higher, the institute stressed. “Holiday pay is therefore a real bonus for employees – and a good argument for employers bound by collective agreements who are looking for skilled workers,” explained income expert Malte Lübker from the WSI.
WSI: Collective bargaining coverage has declined significantly
However, collective bargaining coverage has declined significantly in Germany since the 1990s. According to the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), only about half of all employees (49 percent) are covered by a collective agreement. If only the private sector is considered, the rate is 42 percent.
The amount of the collectively agreed holiday pay depends on the exact provisions in the collective agreements. “This year, the range extends from 186 euros for employees in agriculture in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to 2,686 euros in the wood and plastics processing industry.” The figures refer to employees in the middle pay group.
Little holiday pay in agriculture and gastronomy
In addition to agriculture, holiday pay is also relatively low in the hotel and restaurant industry: in Bavaria, employees covered by collective agreements receive an extra 240 euros, in Saxony it is 195 euros. The special payments are significantly higher in the paper processing industry, the metal industry, the printing industry, the automotive industry, the insurance industry, retail, the construction industry and the chemical industry.
According to the WSI, there is no longer any separate holiday pay in the public sector. Since 2005, it has been paid out together with the Christmas bonus as a standard annual special payment in November. There is also no collectively agreed holiday pay in the banking industry and in some collective agreements in the energy industry.
Source: Stern
