"Germany has the oldest students, youngest retirees and longest vacationing workers in the world"

The Germans have traditionally regarded their model as "Sonderweg", that is a middle of the road approach between free market liberalism and state-centered socialism. The welfare system is an integrated part of Germany's "social market economy." Particularly significant is the fact that in Germany, more than in most countries, welfare policies have been mechanisms of economic governance. That is welfare policies are designed to enhance employment effects by withdrawing surplus labor from the economy. In short, early retirement schemes or long university programs serve to constrain the supply of labor when unemployment rates are high. This has prompted critics to charge that Germany has the oldest students, youngest retirees and longest vacationing workers in the world. European Welfare States - Information and Resources