The federal ministers met yesterday for the second time as a so-called relief cabinet. Since the first meeting on November 5, 2024, 43 measures have already been decided on as part of the modernization agenda for the state and administration, affecting all departments. This also included an immediate program to reduce bureaucracy in occupational safety, which will eliminate around 123,000 safety officers in small and medium-sized companies.
According to the information, the second cabinet will now add ten more reliefs. The aim of the measures is to reduce bureaucratic costs by 25 percent annually and to streamline administration. According to the government, the total relief since the first relief cabinet has amounted to around 10.4 billion euros. The recently decided measures are intended to provide additional relief of around 600 million euros per year.
Karsten Wildberger (CDU), Federal Minister for State Modernization, drew a positive conclusion: “This government is keeping its word when it comes to reducing bureaucracy. In the future, we will only regulate what is really necessary. Relief remains an ongoing task.” As a next step, he announced a reporting relief law that would reduce reporting obligations “in the four-digit range”.
More than 720 million euros relief in labor law
The focus of the relief is, among other things, regulations on occupational health and safety examinations. Federal Labor Minister Bärbel Bas (SPD) emphasized that companies would be freed from unnecessary bureaucracy without sacrificing occupational safety: “Specifically, the extra tests for kettles and charging cables in the office will no longer be necessary. More than 720 million euros in annual bureaucratic costs will be eliminated thanks to our relief package in labor law,” said Bas in a statement from the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (BMAS).
Relevant measures for HR: job promotion, further training and ePA
Three of the ten measures adopted are particularly relevant for employers and HR managers:
- Professional development: Recruiting skilled workers and career advancement should become significantly more attractive. To this end, the federal government is planning changes to the Advancement Training Promotion Act (AFBG) in order to strengthen higher-qualified vocational training. A corresponding draft law is already available. Among other things, the federal government plans to increase the maximum total amount of subsidized course and examination fees from the previous 15,000 euros to 18,000 euros.
In addition, employer subsidies for further training should no longer be counted towards the state contribution to the measures. If employers subsidize their employees for further training, the state deducts this contribution from the state funding. The planned change would be advantageous for employees in the future, as they would retain full state funding. This is intended to further reduce the financial burden on participants in funded training measures.
Planned savings: The annual relief for citizens amounts to around 55,000 euros per year and for the economy to 53,000 euros per year.
- Digital healthcare: With the Act for Data and Digital Innovation in Healthcare (GeDIG), the federal government wants to further advance the digitalization of the healthcare sector. Electronic referrals and improved data use are intended to make processes more efficient for patients and service providers and strengthen research. This also includes expanding the electronic patient record (ePA). A specific measure that also affects HR and employees is that in the future, company doctors will not need prior consent in order to have full access to patient files.
Planned savings: According to the relief cabinet, the relief effect for the economy is around 445 million euros annually.
- Job promotion: Unemployment insurance and job promotion should become more citizen-friendly and transparent in the future through digitalization, automation and reductions in bureaucracy. For employment offices and the unemployed in particular, this means that applications and change notifications will be processed digitally in the future, consultations can take place via video and contracts with private employment agencies should be able to be concluded informally by email. This is intended to make labor administration more efficient in general. This affects HR in that employees are available to the labor market sooner when job placement processes become faster.
Planned savings: The relief effect for the economy is around 942,000 hours of time spent per year; the economy will be relieved of around 11 million euros.
Further measures
Of interest for personnel deployment planning in companies is a project according to which the ban on truck driving on non-national holidays is to be abolished.
There are also apparently changes to be made to electrically powered company cars. In the future, owners of electric vehicles with an E license plate or E badge will be exempt from the obligation to affix an environmental sticker. For this purpose, the 35th Ordinance for the Implementation of the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchV) will be adapted.
Mara Marx is a volunteer at Human Resources.
