Originally it was reasoned this way: blue collar workers (also called laborers) mainly work with their hands. They therefore perform physical work. The work they do was thought to be more monotonous and worse for health. In addition, they have higher sickness absence and change jobs more frequently. White collar workers, by contrast, mainly work with their heads and therefore perform primarily intellectual labor. There has long been a heated debate about whether this distinction is outdated and discriminatory. For this reason, the 'single status' was introduced a few years ago. This statute mainly concerns dismissal. Notice periods and severance payments have been equalized. The probationary period has also been abolished.
There has long been a heated debate about whether this distinction is outdated and discriminatory.
But they are certainly not yet on equal footing. There are still many differences. For example, labourers normally receive their wages twice a month and are paid hourly, whereas white collar workers receive a fixed monthly salary once a month. Their employer also pays the holiday pay. For labourers this is handled via the social security reserve fund. Furthermore, in the event of incapacity for work, a labourer receives pay for 7 days. White collar workers receive their normal pay for 30 days.
In the long term it is clear that these internal differences between the two statuses will have to disappear. Everyone agrees on that. But the distinction is deeply ingrained and it will take a long time before full uniformity between the two statuses is achieved.