Even if business is going well despite the pandemic: Family entrepreneurs fear that Germany will fall behind other industrialized countries economically. They are not only concerned about digitization gaps.
From Axel John, SWR After more than a year of the Covid crisis, much of what was taken for granted in Germany is crumbling. In view of the problems with vaccination orders and the slow pace of vaccination, politicians are fighting against a loss of confidence. Public administration is seen by many as inefficient in times of crisis. And the pandemic has also brought structural problems to light in the economy. Doubts are mounting in many places behind the appearance of an actually self-confident industrial nation.
“We have become full and lazy”
The company is one of the hidden champions in Germany: deep in the west of Rhineland-Palatinate, Bernhard Clemens runs his family business, which produces special equipment for wine and fruit growing and exports it all over the world. His company is based in the unadorned industrial area II in Wittlich. Berlin and the federal government are very far away here. That fits with Clemens’ feeling towards politics. The longer the corona crisis lasts, the more worried the entrepreneur – about the future of the location.
From the point of view of the entrepreneur Bernhard Clemens (left), the Corona crisis has exposed many fundamental problems. Image: Axel John “We overestimated ourselves during the upswing. We have become full and lazy,” says Clemens. “The pandemic revealed the deficits of the Federal Republic in the economy as well. I don’t see any suggestions for improvement, only the management of the deficiencies. And that goes on and on.” His company got through the crisis without any losses. He didn’t even have to register short-time work. Only a few employees went into quarantine as a precaution. Nevertheless, the medium-sized company has many points of criticism. “What about a standardized, rapid exchange of information between the health authorities? Can federalism continue in an emergency? Why is digital teaching not running in schools? There are many fundamental problems behind this.” Even after more than a year, politicians still do not provide any answers. Clemens also heard this from many other entrepreneurs in the region.
Fax number instead of email address
Jens Pohlmann walks five kilometers further through the production halls of his company ProContur. Pohlmann points to huge production machines that manufacture sheet metal and plastic products. “After a crisis, we turned things around together. After a ten percent increase in the past year, it could even be 30 percent in 2021. But the increasing weaknesses of the location are driving me. Why don’t politics and administration finally tackle?” Asks the company boss. The economic consequences of Corona are a wake-up call for him. He initially fully understood the first lockdown in the spring of last year. “We did everything on our own: home office, working remotely, quick tests at our own expense. But to this day I still don’t see any substantial help or a well-thought-out political plan.” Instead, he was asked about the number of employees in the home office in a letter from the authorities. “There wasn’t even an email address given, but a fax number,” complains Pohlmann. “How are we supposed to tackle deficits such as a lack of digitization, a decaying infrastructure or the growing weaknesses in the education system? We have been seeing this for a year now. So we will fall behind and miss the boat internationally.”
Progress in vaccination helps the economy
The impressions from the Eifel are supported by several international studies. The Mannheim research institute ZEW has come to the conclusion that Germany as a location for family businesses has been pushed back further and further over the years. Compared to competitors from the USA or the Netherlands, the Federal Republic is now clearly lagging behind. Rising electricity costs, high taxes and poor infrastructure are criticized. The latest growth report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also shows disappointing results for Germany. The Federal Government repeatedly declares that the Federal Republic is coming through the crisis economically well. According to the IMF study, Germany is at the bottom of the list with a forecast growth of 3.6 percent for this year. Almost all other industrial nations achieve significantly higher values. One reason: the better the vaccination progress in the countries concerned, the better the economy develops.
“Missed future investments”
The economist Daniel Stelter deals with questions of location policy and the economic consequences of the pandemic. After his book “Coronomics” from last year, the economic expert has now published “A dream of a country”. In it, Stelter proposes far-reaching reform steps to get out of the Corona crisis. The former management consultant can understand the lawsuits of the two medium-sized companies from the Eifel. “The boom of the past few years was partly due to the cheap money from the European Central Bank. This also meant that German exports became significantly cheaper. The location, however, became increasingly unattractive,” Stelter analyzes. Companies would therefore have invested less. Productivity has stagnated. The state has also invested too little money in streets, schools or in the cellular network. “During this time, investments in the future were missed. This is another reason why we no longer have any sweeping innovations. We still live today on industries from the imperial era.” At the same time, there are great challenges ahead of Germany. The so important auto industry is facing a change – the exit is open. In addition, demographic change will change society in the next few years. Many skilled workers retire and are then absent from the job market. This is likely to further slow down economic development. All of these are additional burdens, according to Stelter. And what does that mean for the future federal government and also for society? “There is a lot of need for action. After the very expensive Corona programs, the rude awakening will come in two years at the latest,” predicts Stelter. “In my opinion, it is questionable whether politicians will have the strength and the courage to tackle the necessary structural reforms in the upcoming distribution struggles.”
Waiting for the “boom”
In Wittlich, company boss Bernhard Clemens is now sitting in his company’s office. He’s on the phone with a business friend in the USA. After the conversation, he hangs up in exasperation and shakes his head. “So far we have been seen as organizational world champions everywhere. I’ve just been asked again whether the coverage of the corona vaccination campaign in this country is fake news. Unfortunately, I couldn’t deny that. We have already lost our reputation.” Nothing remains of the announced “boom” of the Federal Minister of Finance in the reality of the corporate world. The location still has every chance, according to Clemens. “You have seen how quickly a country can switch out of the crisis – the USA with Biden. When are we going to switch?”
You must log in to post a comment.