Short-Time Work Calculator

Short-time work is a tool with which companies cut staff costs during order slumps without laying people off. Instead of dismissing you, the employer reduces your working hours, and the employment agency compensates part of the lost wage with short-time work benefit. For you that means less work but also less money - and the exact amount is hard to work out yourself with the BMAS flat-rate tables. That is exactly where the calculator comes in.

Short-time work benefit replaces a fixed share of your net wage loss: 60 percent for employees without children, 67 percent for employees with at least one child. The calculator compares your target pay (what you would have earned without the work loss) with your actual pay (the actually reduced wage) and calculates from this the KUG that partly cushions the difference.

An important point many are not aware of: with longer short-time work the percentage rises. From the fourth benefit month the KUG increases by ten percentage points to 70 or 77 percent, from the seventh month by another ten to 80 or 87 percent - provided the work loss is at least 50 percent. The calculator accounts for this staggering so you plan correctly during sustained short-time work.

Many employers top up the short-time work benefit voluntarily or under a collective agreement, for example to 80 or 90 percent of your previous net. The calculator plays through various top-up scenarios and shows what reaches you in each case and what costs arise for the employer. That way you immediately understand what a works agreement or collective offer concretely means for you.

Short-time work is time-limited: in principle the KUG is paid for a maximum of twelve months (§ 104 SGB III), but by government decree the duration can be extended, as was the case during the COVID-19 crisis. The rules for side jobs during short-time work also matter, because side earnings may be credited. The calculator classifies these framework conditions.

The tool works with a simplified, flat-rate net wage table. The exact amount is ultimately calculated by the employment agency using the official BMAS KUG tables, which also consider tax class and further details. The calculator, however, gives you a solid estimate with which to plan your finances - free, without signup and entirely in your browser.