From the mid-1980s until 2005 the German labour market was characterised by continuous deregulation. In the period of an improving German labour market, the German governments have since imposed measures to re-regulate the labour market in order to strengthen employees' rights. At the same time...

"Since as early as the beginning of the 1980s German labour law - especially the regulations related to protection against dismissal and fixed-term employment - has come under criticism as a possible cause of a lack of labour market flexibility. From an economic point of view mandatory labour...