otherwise, germany is facing massive problems. >> in germany, people were up 1400 hours per head per year. in the longer term, by about 2040, that will need to rise to about 1700 hours. that may sound ambitious, but it is possible compared to what is worked in the u.s. or japan, where they put in 1800 hours a year. >> another solution would be involved in more women in the workplace. in germany, many well-qualified mothers still stay at home, often because of inadequate child care facilities. hellman's managing director knows he will have to raise his quota of female employees to win the talent battle. >> it is a tough race. if you are faster and more attractive, you have a better chance of winning. >> that means workers should be able to make greater demands. labor market analysts are already sizing up the consequences. >> the biggest danger is going to far -- too far. that could mean the politicians do not get their act together, that the unions tried to exploit the chance with excessive pay demands. then, companies will have more incentive to close their operations in germany, eit

as i do to the ones here in germany. when i go back now, i have a totally different perspective. >> many russian speakers only return as temporary visitors to the former soviet republics they came from. as the dj urges, they stay attuned to berlin. >> hard as it is to believe, this used to be really station exclusively for the russians with a daily service to moscow. for decades, this was the way soldiers and their families got to and from postings or went to visit relatives back at home because it is from here they left in the end. the memories linger. here, there were the best of the best. they have status. it is hardly surprising that back in russia, there was a certain amount of nostalgia for the time they spent in germany. >> alexander's comrades are singing "farewell germany," like they did when they left the first time. there were officers south of berlin. they have very fond memories of their stay there. extremely proud that their husbands and fathers were we had been entrusted with service in a prestigious garri

s of the workers in germany why because there's actually a constitutional amendment in germany that forces corporate executives to listen to labor unions it's called the works constitution act and it forces every factory to set up a works council so the code works councils to gives representatives of the workers a seat at the table in every decision making process at the factory that's democracy in the workplace expanding the decision making process to not just the corporate elite but to everybody in the company from the bottom up and it's working as horse mooned the head of the international department of the german auto workers says we have strong unions we have strong social security systems we have high wages so if i believe what the neo liberals or what are called conservatives here in the us are arguing we would have to be bankrupt but apparently this is not the case the journey the economy is working well in germany it turns out that in germany workers know what's best for the economy and the government knows those that as well. in the aftermath of world war two as germany was in ru

of them in germany. eon signed a pact with its unions to save 5.5 billion euros by 2014. a large amount is needed to build wind turbines. >> so, germany is introducing new steps. the measures, in response to a number of racially-motivated murders allegedly committed by anyone not to group. the government has set up an agency to reach out to young people, especially susceptible to the far right ideology. it will consult with newspapers on effective ways to sort near not seize. is the german government taking steps against far-right extremism, or is this all tough talk? >> the government is doing several things to combat extremism. dave agreed to set up a national to set an unnatural -- a national center focus on this issue. they have agreed to set up a agencies in germany are decentralized. they do not share information very well together. it is it intended to send a message to local groups and civilian organizations at a grassroots level who are around the country, doing their best, to send a message to

germany has strongly supported the financial transaction tax for quite some time but germany has beenoing this within the g-20 forum, for example, pushing this already for well over a year. whatat gerny wants to see is a financial transaction tax introduced on the world, basically, introduced at a global level. if that is not possible or not within the g-20, then germany would like to see it introduced europe-wide, ideally with in all 27 countries in the european union. it that is not possible, the chancellor said she, herself, personally supports and reducing it within the eurozone countries. she made clear that was her personal position, the government does not necessarily share the, particularly the free democrats who are typically pro- business. >> to iraq now, where officials say at least 18 people were killed in three bombings in and near the capital baghdad on monday. wave of violence that has mnly a targeted shia muslims. 16 people died when two crumbs exploded in baghdad monday evening. earlier in the day, a roadside bomb killed two shia pilgrims who were walking to the holy

she said germany will not promise what it cannot deliver.thousands of the world's top business and economic leaders are gathering in the swiss town of davos for what promises to be an interesting few days of meetings with the future of the eurozone on top of the agenda. >> germany is currently the strong man of europe, the hancellor in a strong position, but she did not come to provide a new formula to solve the eurozone crisis. instead, she delivered more of her familiar restraint. for merkel, it is critical germany does not overstretched itself. >> we do not want a situation where we promise something that we ultimately cannot deliver. if germany promises something on behalf of all member states that is not doable in the event of a heavy assault from the markets, then europe is making itself vulnerable on one flank. >> the chancellor is adamant that correct reforms are being put into place to boost employment and growth, but she cautions that those measures need time. >> everyone knows it will take longer than 12 or 18 months. it is very i

could be slowing down. >> the slowdown has reached germany.resh numbers indicate europe's biggest economy shrank by 0.20% -- 0.25% in the final quarter of 2011, fuelling worries of a further slowdown. overall, 2011 was a strong year, with germany recording impressive growth of 3%. >> high employment levels in germany in 2011 translated into strong consumer growth, and people here spent readily on big-ticket items in particular. private consumption grew 1.5%, a rate not seen for the past five years. the report by the federal statistics office shows domestic demand was the main factor behind gdp growth last year. in 2009, the international financial crisis pulled the brakes on germany's economic performance. gdp contracted by 5.1%. after that, a recovery started. in 2010, the annual growth rate was up 3 + 7%. last year, the economy grew by 3%. the country's balance sheet is good news for finance minister. all the extra tax revenues have cut the budget deficit to 1% of gdp, the first time in three years the figure has been under the eu's 3% limit

well, 2012 kicks off in germany with a new twist in the negative headlines around germany's president. the mass-circulation tabloid confirmed reports that he tried to stop publication of a story. the president reportedly threatened war on the paper if it ran the story. here is our report. >> four weeks, the popular german newspaper has been running stories about the president by in this house. the paper has confirmed that he tried to stop the story. he reportedly left a voicemail threatening a lawsuit. he is also alleged to have called a the editor in chief back to retract the threat, but that has not satisfied journalist. >> when they are threatened, journalists do not take it lightly. it is troubling the president would engage in this behavior. >> the opposition had been restrained in their criticism, but now they are asking for answers. >> it seems we're getting the information bit by bit. we need a full explanation as soon as possible. my own trust has been shaken. >> christian wulff attempted to explain the loan in a speech before christmas. in the same speech, he praised freedom

all you need to know about studying in germany is here.tion on courses, admission requirements, qualifications, costs, and much more. www.dw-world.de/studyingermany, the first port of call for anyone interested in studying in germany. >> welcome back. we continue our broadcast with a look at tolerance and what it means. tolerance has become so important in our modern world that the united nations has given issued a formal declaration on its principles. it shapes many of the values it shapehat make up a democratic society. tolerance is the willingness to recognize and respect the beliefs and practices of others. but, every day, we're report here on acts of war, violence, and ethnic conflicts, all mostly a result of intolerance. throughout history, millions of people have died for their beliefs and expressing their opinions in pursuit of a more accepting environment. many people suffer in the name of intolerance, be it for their religion, for their sexual orientation, or simply for their bad habits. here is a look at some examples. ♪ >> stre

age 91, he is one of germany's most influential literary critics. as a young man, he was deported to the warsaw ghetto. he managed to flee, but his parents were murdered in a concentration camp, and his brother was executed in another. >> the nazis spoke of the resettlement of the jews. that was a euphemism. it was an expulsion. it was the expulsion of jews from warsaw. it had one purpose only and one objective -- to kill them. >> such words are a reminder to today's politicians of the lessons of the past. those lessons are as important as ever as the president of the parliament stressed. >> in the last few days, we receive a final report of an inquiry launched in 2008 and to anti-semitism in germany. it found latent anti-semitism in 20% of the population. for germany, that is precisely 20% to much. >> he has always maintained that the power of storytelling was key to his own survival with commemorations across germany. the country hopes the story of the holocaust will continue to be told for generations to come. >> the commemoration comes as a germ

germany and france meet again looking for ways to world cracks in the euro zone germany's already thrown billions at saving the euro it's no surprise that it wants more control over the rest of the pack which is why berlin players are pushing to build a so-called fiscal compact meant to take the reins over so over and budgets but it's an idea that's not going down well on germany streets especially if there is a threat that germany can gain certain positions and influence in the e.u. and it may not really have any right to be doing this germany over the money but it gives the government gets power more. more power for. years as it's bad i think there's a danger the so-called robin hood tax is another proposed measure it will charge the financial institutions for every money movie meet with him to sterilize the markets however with more gloomy economic news over the euro zone's joblessness and feeling the chill seals some analysts warn if introduced the new tax meet only makes struggling countries even more dependent on france and germany is money there's no doubt germany remains the indu

germany is doing well with a conservative libereral clition. >> he empmphasid the importance of germany's social market model. he saiaid t fdp stood for the economy and clarity. >> when all others are turning their back on growth, germany needs a party which gives it a solid backing. that party is the free democrats, the fdp. >> talk of tax cuts, a key fdp issue, w was conspicuous by its absence. instead, they concentrated on other traditional positions like dernizing energy policy and reducing public debt. >> for more, let's bring in our political correspondent, terry martin. let's go back to what has happened to the f fdp in this ty state. how bad is it for the party? >> it is amazing. just when you think that things could not get worse for the fdp, they go from bad to even worse. it is shocking, really. the news of that broke juste -- during the party conference when the party leader was just gettttingp to speak. the timing, obviously, was not very good. they had been having major problems at the federal level for a couple of years now, ever since entering government as a junior coalil

the showdown that is gripping germany. iraq claim over 70 lives. and a wind storm makes waves in northern europe, knocking out electricity and closing airports. ♪ >> it is the scandal that is pitting germany's president against its biggest tabloid newspaper. did christian wulff tell the wholeruth in a crucial tv says no. last night?t? but chris schauble has refused permission to do that. it set up a showdown that is just the latest stage in the scandal that threatens to engulf the president. >> christianalmart -- christian wulff rejected a request. he says it is a private matter. bild said publication is the only way to clear up a dispute over what the president said. in wednesday's tv interview, christian wulff maintain that the voicemail message was not an attempt to stop publication about the story of his home loan. >> i ask the the number to delay publication by one day so we connection the facts were right. >> but his critics are not convinced. judging from today's headlines, the president has not dispelled all doubts about his integrity. even

go through the world charles love germany from one thousand nine hundred to two thousand and five he's now chairman of the board at nordstrom's russia's new gas pipeline under the baltic sea to europe mr further why should the e.u. increase its dependence on gazprom as kidney. opinion. we're not talking about russia's dependence we're talking about cooperation between russia on the one side and the european union on the other in the energy sector new stream is viewed as a priority project both by russia and the e.u. because it's been part of europe's energy networks since two thousand and six not recognized by the european parliament and the e.u. council of energy minister brussels wants all russian energy companies not just gazprom to be allowed to export gas to europe what are the implications of that for gazprom and europe as. regulator e permission is not the issue which the e.u. germany and the rest of the nations need gas to sensibly reform their energy policy people russia on the other hand has to sell gas to keep its budget in order so there's a codependency which is a good thi

that and how will it change germany's energy mix. have been damaged mind consider this me and my team were the people who originally negotiated that deal with our energy suppliers and we had agreed to make a sensible exit out of nuclear strategy that was followed by a short period when the federal government thought our agreement should be overturned and they've since gone the other way and started to porting what i had negotiated on this does not mean bridge technologies like nuclear energy cannot be used until energy efficiency is sufficiently developed but we need gas as an interim energy source for the sake of energy security that's the reason we need to buy gas from new york from other cultures but primarily from russia and the reason we need to build a gas power station. with this debt crisis mr sarkozy says no euro no europe surely you're worth of oil without the euro so on that there's an a and a former well this is a quote from a successor in office likes to go to of course europe is going to have problems if the euro has pr

germany and the rest of the e.u. nations need gas to sensibly reform their energy policy that people russia on the other hand has to sell gas to keep its budget in order so there's a codependency which is a good thing i would be happy to see european companies invest into russia and european markets open up to russian companies it's a good free market economy this is why i think europeans need gas or gas has many uses here with the political uncertainty in north africa it's good to have a stable partner that you can rely on and russia is one of them you know better than anyone else for instance that written recently switched from export to india europe needs a gas supply to maintain a stable mix of energy sources but it's climatic conditions require it needs norway to get outside but also russia's gas and therefore i think opening the market up to national companies would be a wise move of. the name to do some e.u. officials oppose russia whatever it does get as is ford's or that's most mine i guess it is so we have

here in germany, a new study commissioned by parliament has found that 20% of people living in germanyw signs of latent anti-semitism. the report notes that anti- jewish violence is perpetrated by a very small and radical minority. >> neo-nazis on the march in germany. today's far-right continues to be a hotbed of anti-semitism. it is responsible for about 90% of anti-semitic crimes, like vandalizing jewish cemeteries. but anti-semitic attitudes are more widespread than that. that is the warning from the commission. its members say prejudice against jews is not dying out with the wartime generation. >> modern forms of communication, especially the internet, making it almost impossible to stop these ideas spreading. anti-semitism has long been a taboo in public discourse in germany, and there is not a threat that is being undermined. >> the experts criticize existing measures to tackle the problem, sang their to piecemeal and failing to prevent the spread of anti-semitic attitudes. >> in germany does not have a far-reaching strategy to tackle anti-semitism. we have put together a list o

or to germany. let's go to some other world news for you here on the top of the world update star tension first out of libya where fighting has broken out in the center of the capital between two armed militia groups leaving at least five dead the clashes a thought though started after former rebels based in tripoli arrested fighters who belong to. some a city of misrata this will bring down. witnesses say the tripoli militia arrested six men brought them inside a council building beat them up and detained the resulting intense battle on shoes day involved machine guns rocket propelled grenades and anti aircraft guns and eight month old in libya ended in october but there are concerns of a growing hostility between rival. tribal groups. the arab league has called an emergency meeting to discuss whether to withdraw its observers from syria france's voice down over the effectiveness of the league monitors in the country all amid concerns that forces are still killing antigovernment protesters in the m

is money there's no doubt germany. is now used to why. as well you've already frankfurt germany. belgium. epic says that euro zone the euro zone will now be governed by germany and france and the rest of the blocs members will simply have to give up their sovereignty to save the euro. the system has failed so far now we're introducing principles that we should have introduced ten years ago when we started to introduce the euro then we had a stability pact which basically unraveled now we're doing it ten years later while we have it we're having a crisis on our hands and this new bank is not going to go to the immediate problem of the refinancing of debt of italy and france and to grow and prosper grows and i'm afraid that the eurozone is going to become a stagnation i think it's very hard for national parliaments to accept all this new treaty as it is and the other thing is that the eurozone now is run basically by two countries by germany and france and fifteen fifteen other countries simply have to follow as if they'

people believe that germany is particularly strong. true. germany is quite strong. it's particularly big compared to others. but it's not as if we were saying we don't wish to show solidarity. we are not willing to enter into binding commitments. that is not true. we have said right from the start that we wish to stand up for the euro. but what we don't want is a situation where we are forced to promise something that in the end we will not be able to fulfill. if germany, for example, on behalf of all of the other member countries were promising something, that if the markets really attack us, we will not be able to come up with, then we have indeed an open flank. and i think we have shown in many, many ways that we are serious about showing solidarity and binding commitments. the rescue package and the willingness that we say yes if we violate the rules, we are ready to have others bring legal action against us, and also those areas that are part and parcel of community law. and all of that we say to those who are questioning our solidarity and our steadfastness to

including germany got used to funding current projects by borrowing for the future. we have to put a stop to this now. sees debt as a time bomb. and it is taking. -- ticking. that is why the 27-member countries keep meeting in brussels. and everyone has a different opinion. some are saying no to everything. that has annoyed angela merkel and nicolas sarkozy. they want to establish and new eu treaty. -- they want to establish a new eu treaty. >> we have to produce a debt ceiling in their national constitutions. >> meaning an end to reckless spending, and how exactly? no one knows. things could get unpleasant for countries with excess debt. >> debts procedures against countries could be launched more easily, almost automatically. >> but who would take support? that is a sore point. some countries including germany wants the eu commission to have more power so it can act independently. the draft treaty says in the country can take another 2 court. >> that does not work. it has never been used in 60 years. so, it is already a firm indication it does not work. >> with the

r t frankfurt germany. all right so we want to talk a little bit more about the global economy and also take a look at something's happening on our shores here in america so let's bring in dean baker co-director of the center for economic and policy research and dean let's start with what we just saw in this report the fears by some about you know this newfound power of germany i know that this is a site that we've seen quite a bit over the last few months german chancellor angela merkel french president nicolas sarkozy working together what about this notion that this is all about sort of a power grab well i think it is a power grab in the sense that they are strained going the economies of southern europe the profile economies spain italy greece and they're demanding horrible austerity and the policies they're pursuing is just making the recession worse so they're doing two things on the one hand when you cut government budget deficits when you're already in a severe downturn that just is going to raise t