A general statutory minimum wage has been in force in Germany since 1 January 2015, which sets the minimum wage for employees in all sectors and occupations. On 1 January 2024, it will increase to €12.40 gross per hour, having last been raised to €12 in October 2022. Anyone working full-time for the minimum wage will now earn around 2170 euros instead of the previous 2100 euros. This corresponds to an increase of 3.3% and thus the consumer price trend over the period.

Raising the minimum wage could provide around ten million people with more money, at least in nominal terms (see figure). Almost a quarter of all employees in Germany work in so-called minimum wage sectors, which, according to a definition by the Federal Employment Agency, have comparatively low average gross wages and are more affected by minimum wage increases. These include, in particular, the high-employment sectors of retail, catering, temporary employment and building cleaning. Women in particular often work in these low-paid services, which is why minimum wage increases are also intended to contribute to equality.
 

In addition, the many employees in postal, courier and express services (519,000 employees), agriculture and forestry (443,000), accommodation (420,000) and private households with domestic staff (311,000) could benefit from an increase in the minimum wage. Smaller affected sectors include the production of baked goods and pasta (292 thousand employees), private security services (258 thousand), slaughtering and meat processing (200 thousand), hairdressing and beauty salons (196 thousand), gardening and landscaping services (190 thousand), taxi companies (145 thousand), call centres (124 thousand) and gambling, betting and lotteries (76 thousand).

Other figures can be found here.