Employed in Times of Corona (May 2020)

The Corona crisis (COVID-19) affects a large proportion of companies and freelancers in Germany.
Against this background, the study examines the personal situation and working conditions of employees in Germany in times of corona. The analysis mainly refers to the situation in May 2020 and can only make limited statements about the further situation of the employed persons in the course of the corona pandemic.<br>1. Personal situation: change in working times during the corona crisis; current work situation (local focus of one´s own work); preference for home office; preference for future home office; financial losses due to the corona crisis; concerns about the financial and economic consequences of the corona crisis in Germany; concerns about the corona crisis in personal areas (job security, current working conditions, financial situation, career opportunities, family situation, health, psychological well-being, housing situation); support from the employer in the corona crisis.

2. Economy and welfare state: political interest; assessment of the economic situation in Germany; preferred form of government (strong vs. liberal state); agreement on various statements on the weighing of values in the Corona crisis (the restrictions on public life to protect the population from Corona are not in proportion to the economic crisis caused by it, the money now being made available for economic aid will later be lacking in other important areas such as education, infrastructure or climate protection, for politicians, the health of the population is the top priority, the interests of the economy influence them less strongly with regard to the corona crisis, the worst part of the crisis is now behind us, as a result of the economic effects of the corona crisis the contrast between rich and poor in Germany will become even more pronounced, the corona crisis affects the low earners more than the middle class, the corona crisis significantly advances the digitalisation of the world of work); perception of state action in the corona crisis on the basis of pairs of opposites (e.g. bureaucratic - unbureaucratic, passive - active, etc.); responsibility of the state to provide financial support to companies in the corona crisis; responsibility of the state to provide financial support to private individuals in the corona crisis over and above basic provision; recipients of state financial aid in the corona crisis (companies, directly to needy private individuals, companies and private individuals alike); assessment of the bureaucracy involved in state financial aid (speed vs. exact examination).

3. Measures: awareness of current measures to support business and individuals in the corona crisis; assessment of current measures to support business and individuals in the corona crisis; reliance on assistance in the corona crisis; nature of assistance used in the corona crisis; barriers to use of assistance in the corona crisis; assessment of the effectiveness of the state measures to cope with the corona crisis; appropriate additional measures to mitigate the economic consequences; concerns about the consequences of the planned state measures (increasing tax burden, rising social contributions, rising inflation, stagnating pension levels, rising retirement age, reduction of other state transfers, safeguarding savings).

4. Information: active search for information on financial assistance offers by the Federal Government in the corona crisis; self-assessment of the level of information on measures to support business and private individuals in the corona crisis; request for detailed information on state assistance measures in the corona crisis (e.g. application process, sources of funding, conditions for receiving assistance, etc.) sources of information used about state aid measures in the Corona crisis; contact with institutions offering economic and financial aid during the Corona crisis (development bank/ municipal development agency, employment agency, tax office, none of them); experience with institutions offering economic and financial aid during the Corona crisis (appropriate treatment).

5. Outlook: assessment of the future economic situation in Germany; assessment of Germany´s future as a strong business location; assessment of its own future economic situation; assessment of the duration of the economic impairment caused by the Corona crisis.

Demography: age; sex; education; employment; self-localization social class; net household income; current household income; household income before the crisis; occupational activity; belonging to systemically important occupations; number of persons in the household; number of children under 18 in the household; size of town; party sympathy; migration background.

Additionally coded: current number; federal state; education (low, medium, high); weighting factor.