On 15 July, the managing directors and policy officers of the family organisations of AGF met for their final meeting before the summer break to discuss the impact on families of the social policy reforms currently planned by the German government.
The focus was on the question of what consequences the numerous cuts and benefit reductions – often spread across different legislative procedures – might have for families when taken together. Topics discussed included the planned cuts to parental allowance and advance maintenance payments (Unterhaltsvorschuss), changes to the recognition of care for relatives under pension law, the effects of the housing benefit reform, the planned extension of maximum weekly working hours, cuts to SGB II, and the introduction of a requirement to submit a certificate of incapacity for work from the very first day of illness.
There was agreement during the discussion that the individual reform proposals should not be considered in isolation. Whilst the combination of benefit cuts, higher out-of-pocket costs and increasing demands for flexibility in working hours particularly affects families in vulnerable circumstances, single parents and family carers while the repercussions extend far beyond these groups. Even middle-income families are coming under increasing pressure as the need to balance paid work, caring for children and elderly relatives places ever greater demands on their time, organisation and finances. If, at the same time, support benefits are reduced, care work receives less recognition and expectations regarding time availability in professional life are raised, the burden of family responsibilities as a whole risks becoming more difficult to bear.This has consequences not only for individual families, but for social cohesion as a whole.
The organisations pointed out that, through a multitude of individual reform proposals, policymakers are currently creating family policy and economic frameworks that are increasingly at odds with the societal expectation that families should continue to shoulder the bulk of the work involved in bringing up children, providing care and carrying out care work.
This last meeting before the summer break was also the final meeting held at the AGF’s current premises in Berlin-Schöneberg. The secretariat will be moving to its new location at Oranienplatz 5, 10999 Berlin-Kreuzberg, on 20 July.