The chancellor, who has been channeling public funds into militarization, has blamed compatriots for not working hard enough Chancellor Friedrich Merz has launched a fresh critique of German work ethic, questioning why employees take an average of “almost three weeks” of sick leave annually instead of working harder to boost the country’s dwindling economic performance. Campaigning in Baden-Württemberg last week, Merz took aim at the system of telephone sick notes, introduced during the