Minimum wage increase: around one in five jobs affected

Dehoga calls for urgent relief

According to the statisticians, the sector most affected by the minimum wage increase in Saxony is the hospitality industry. Here, 64 percent of employees are affected. This is a considerable challenge for the industry, said Axel Klein, Managing Director of the hotel and restaurant association Dehoga Sachsen, to the German Press Agency.

The companies are forced to pass on the rising wage costs to customer prices. But: "Entrepreneurs have to make sure that they don't lose out on the market with their product." The industry has already been recording real losses in turnover for years. It is to be feared that the trend will continue with further price increases. Relief is urgently needed elsewhere.

There is already a prospect of this: in their coalition agreement, the CDU and SPD have announced a permanent reduction in VAT in the catering industry to seven percent. The last time there was a reduced tax rate was during the coronavirus pandemic, which expired at the end of 2023.