WEBVTT

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Washing, cutting, trimming.

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Oksana has been working at
the Cutman hair salon in Berlin

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for three years.

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Like many in her line of work, 

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she's passionate about styling her customers 

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and having a friendly chat while doing so.

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At the same time, 
many hairdressers are also worried

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 as they're making minimum wage 
in times of drastically rising prices.

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In Germany, 6 million people 

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work for €12.82 per hour,

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 most of them in retail gastro and service jobs 

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Their exact earnings
 are set by an independent Commission.

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They're required to look 
towards the median wage

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 and set the minimum at around 60%.

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But for employers, 

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the question of higher wages 
is not such an easy equation.

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Here at Cutman, that would mean 
that we have to cut down on personnel

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 and we have to raise prices 

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100% will have to pass this on to customers

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because the money 
has to come from somewhere.

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Ever since the minimum wage 
was standardized back in 2015,

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  it rose steadily, starting at €8.50.

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If the minimum wage
 were to reach €15 as is currently discussed,

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 that would be a 76% rise over 10 years, 

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 far outpacing standard wages, 

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which on average have only 
gone up by 22% between 2015 and today.

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Pros and cons of a higher minimum
wage can be argued in any hair salon

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or bakery or restaurant for that matter.

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But they're also debated among economists,

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 and they too disagree on 
what's best for the country 

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and its stagnating economy.

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A higher minimum wage guarantees, 
many people a higher income, 

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but it also helps the economy as a whole

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 as it makes the economy more dynamic.

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It increases demand and productivity as well.

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A higher minimum wage certainly
strengthens the purchasing power

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 of those who earn it,

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 but we have to be clear about the fact

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 that it also increases prices for 
goods and services produced or provided by

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those people who are
actually earning that minimum wage.

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Like the haircuts at Cutman, 
for example, they would go up in price

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and the salon fears that
customers might cut back on visits.