| In increasingly desperate moves to reduce labour costs, German economists are considering how employers can avoid paying workers in cigarette and tea breaks. Employees could be forced to carry time cards and stamp themselves in and out when they leave their workplace for a smoke or drink so that, at the end of the month, the time they spent away from work could be totted up. Under the proposal, the wages for that time would then be withheld. Norbert Walter, head economist at Deutsche Bank, said that restricting pay to time actually worked would reduce labour costs dramatically. "Those who want to smoke and drink tea should be able to continue doing so. But no one should expect that the employer should pay for their breaks," he said. Some estimates say that some employees would stand to lose up to a month's wages each year. |