How punctual are Germans?

DW (English)

Is coming five minutes late an issue to Germans? How much tardiness do they consider impolite? And do they manage to always be on time themselves? Euromaxx reporter Josephine Günther investigates.

Transcript

00:00 I'm German and most people think of me as a really punctual person,

00:05 because punctuality is Germany's number one virtue.

00:08 But to be really honest, I'm not always on time,

00:11 and now I want to find out whether Germans really are that punctual.

00:16 Hold on, wait, I'm here too. I'm your inner German, your little German conscience,

00:20 and I can tell you I would be always punctual.

00:24 Well, if you say so, let's have a look at how punctual Germans are in their free time, in public life and at work.

00:32 Sounds good. I will be there to show you that we are always on time.

00:36 Germans and the workplace, something immediately associated with punctuality and efficiency.

00:45 Let's head to the office to see if it's actually true.

00:48 Oh, but you're cutting it close.

00:50 Not really. It only takes me 15 minutes to get to my work.

00:53 The meeting is at 8.

00:54 But if the train is delayed or something else happened, you would definitely arrive late.

00:58 Your boss is relying on you to be on time.

01:00 OK, maybe you're right. I can move on.

01:03 Now I'm much too early.

01:10 Well, really, you can't show up for this meeting this early either.

01:13 "Fünf Minuten vor der Zeit ist des Deutschen Pünktlichkeit."

01:17 This German saying means you have to arrive five minutes earlier to be on time.

01:22 Oh man, I will get a coffee first then.

01:24 Oh, yeah.

01:26 Bye bye. See you tomorrow.

01:30 That still has to be taken care of, please.

01:32 Of course.

01:33 Hold on, it's five o'clock. Time to go home.

01:38 But I've still got to finish this up.

01:40 But it's Feierabend. We're out of here.

01:43 You think so?

01:44 Yeah, sure. We Germans like to leave work on time.

01:47 Going by the world average, we only work a little overtime because we're efficient and we leave and arrive punctual.

01:54 Yes, we've been doing less and less overtime. That's true.

01:56 Especially compared to other countries.

01:59 But punctual and efficient we are not always.

02:02 I've got to finish this now and I will leave in 15 minutes. Deal?

02:05 Deal.

02:06 A typical working day, you could definitely say that Germans place great value on punctuality at work.

02:11 And it is also rooted in work culture.

02:14 But what about in their free time?

02:16 Let's see.

02:17 I'm meeting my friend Lisa now.

02:20 We are on time.

02:25 Sure, I don't want to make her wait.

02:28 Now, where is she?

02:29 I'm sure she will be along right away. Don't worry.

02:33 Check your mobile again.

02:34 Has she texted you?

02:35 No, she hasn't. That's odd.

02:40 It's impolite. She's wasting our time.

02:43 In fact, most surveys show that the majority of Germans expect people being on time or a maximum of five minutes late.

02:50 Sorry I'm so late. My mobile phone battery ran out.

02:53 Otherwise I would have let you know, of course.

02:55 No problem.

02:57 And Germans love it when you apologize for being late.

03:00 Then everything is forgiven and forgotten.

03:02 Me too.

03:03 Coffee again soon.

03:05 See you. Bye.

03:06 And what about parties?

03:07 As a punctual German, when is a good time to arrive?

03:11 Well, then it gets a bit tricky because often how punctual you are at the party depends a lot on the context.

03:17 But who's really on time at a party?

03:19 We are. And we have to bring something. So hurry up.

03:23 Off we go.

03:23 Oh, what are you doing here already?

03:34 Didn't you say eight o'clock?

03:36 Oh, it was from eight o'clock.

03:38 Brief summary.

03:41 From eight o'clock means no one expecting you to be on time.

03:44 But the context is important.

03:46 If it's a small gathering, you're more likely to arrive punctually.

03:49 And if there is food, then you will also probably arrive on time.

03:53 OK, but then you should really ask if you can help her to get something ready.

03:58 Oh, sorry. Can I help you get something ready?

04:00 Yeah, sure. With pleasure. Come in.

04:01 This whole punctuality isn't that easy.

04:07 We can agree. At work, the Germans are very punctual.

04:10 In their private life, they're more relaxed.

04:12 But what about the public life? Let's say if I take a trip somewhere.

04:15 Hold on. Isn't it weird that the train is not here?

04:24 No, not really.

04:25 This isn't typical for Germany at all.

04:28 Ten minutes? That can't be true.

04:35 To be honest, that happens all the time. Just relax.

04:38 Our trains are fairly unreliable by EU measures.

04:41 We're in 19th place out of 27.

04:44 Surprised?

04:45 But that won't work. Then we'll be late to our meeting.

04:48 Don't worry. I factored that in, of course.

04:50 We will still arrive on time.

04:52 The train is delayed by 35 minutes.

04:55 And now?

04:56 Well, now we've got it.

04:57 The truth most probably doesn't bear up the cliché.

05:00 Although we do love being on time.

05:03 Totally. Germans hold punctuality in high regard.

05:06 And it's all firmly rooted in German culture and history.

05:09 How punctual are you? Share it in the comment section.

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