DGB: About €64 billion lost in Germany due to minimum‑wage non‑compliance (2015–2024)
DGB estimates shortfalls of roughly €64 billion for 2015–2024, with unpaid wages, missing social contributions and lost tax revenue.
An analysis by the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) estimates that failures to comply with the statutory minimum wage in Germany between 2015 and 2024 resulted in financial losses of about 64 billion euros. The DGB’s calculations assign parts of that shortfall not only to workers but also to social insurance funds and the state budget.
How the losses add up
According to the DGB estimate, roughly 35 billion euros represent pay that should have been received by workers but were not paid because the legal hourly minimum was ignored. Another 22 billion euros were reportedly not paid into social insurance funds, and the state allegedly lost a further 7 billion euros in income tax revenue.
The union’s figures are based on data from the German Socio‑Economic Panel, a large annual household survey. The analysis finds that, on average, affected employees were shortchanged by between 1.70 and 2.40 euros per hour. Sectors with many low‑paid workers — notably hospitality, retail and agriculture — are highlighted as particularly at risk.
The DGB also estimates that about two million workers a year were affected by such violations after the statutory minimum wage was introduced in 2015. The current legal minimum wage in Germany is €13.90 per hour; it was introduced in 2015 as a nationwide floor with some exceptions.
Enforcement is a central concern for the unions. The report points out that, statistically, a company in Germany would be inspected by the competent authorities only about once every 140 years. In 2024 there were roughly 6,200 proceedings related to minimum wage breaches and fines totaling €25.4 million were imposed.
Employers have questioned the methodology used to arrive at the 64 billion euro estimate, expressing doubts about the calculation base. Nevertheless, employer groups and unions agree on one point: non‑compliance with the minimum wage is unacceptable and violations must be detected and sanctioned.
Photo: EPA-EFE/ANNA SZILAGYI
