The Federal Employment Agency (BA) puts the financial costs of short-time work at over 30 billion Euros. This means that the federal government would have to help with payments, BA chief Detlef Scheele said. The BA has currently only paid 2.5 billion Euros in short-time work benefits because many companies have not yet settled in the Corona crisis. The BA’s reserve cushion is comfortable, but it is notably designed for long-term financial viability.