Grassroots work | Indispensable yet invisible

They clean offices, stock supermarket shelves, deliver food , or care for the elderly and sick . Their work forms the foundation of our everyday lives, yet remains largely excluded from political debates: so-called basic workers. One-fifth of the workforce in Germany works in such unskilled and semi-skilled jobs – both in production and in the service sector.

Johanna Siebert and Mara Buchstab of the Berlin think tank "Progressives Zentrum" collected reports from such workers in their study "The Indispensable – People in Grassroots Work." The results show that the working conditions of people in building cleaning, catering, production, logistics, or care are almost always characterized by stress, low income, and little recognition.

The results paint a vivid picture of working conditions: A quarter of respondents are employed on a marginal basis, 13 percent are on temporary contracts, and more than 38 percent frequently feel rushed – significantly more than qualified workers. Almost half of the basic workers suffer from a lack of money at the end of the month.

In jobs like cleaning or logistics, up to 78 percent work without formal qualifications. At the same time, continuing education opportunities are scarce, employee participation rights are limited, and fears of losing status are growing. Language barriers and uncertain residency status also make people vulnerable. Some companies exploit this.

The study also shows how insecure work influences political thinking and action. Precarious employment relationships are associated with lower levels of trust in democracy among employees. Conversely, improving working conditions also promotes democratic participation.

“Securing democracy means deprecarization.”

Johanna Siebert Think Tank Progressive Center

In light of current developments, these findings are essential. In the 2025 federal election, 38 percent of workers voted for the AfD—more than the CDU/CSU and SPD combined. "Securing democracy thus means de-precarization—in the sense of strengthening financial, physical, and psychological security, as well as expanding self-determination and solidarity in the workplace," Siebert explained at the presentation of the study at Berlin's Hans Böckler House.

The event also featured a documentary film portraying three grassroots workers in their daily work – including 34-year-old Cynthia Würpel. "We work for and with people," explained the home care assistant from Magdeburg during the presentation of the study. "I love my job," she added.

The study not only describes the material conditions of grassroots workers' lives, but also provides insight into their emotional worlds. These include hurt, dashed hopes, and denied recognition, but also pride in their work and awareness of their own abilities.

The researchers' work follows the tradition of other publications in which affected people themselves are given a voice. French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu's "The Misery of the World" was published as early as the 1990s. In it, he and his research team interviewed numerous "ordinary people." The unemployed, migrants, farmers, and workers shared their biographies, living conditions, perspectives and experiences, hopes and disappointments.

In 2021, German sociologists Nicole Mayer-Ahuja and Oliver Nachtwey collected reports "from class society" in their book "Underrated High Performers." There, too, employees from sectors such as healthcare, nutrition, and logistics were given their own voices.

Following the documentary, Yasmin Fahimi, Chair of the German Trade Union Confederation, opened a debate with Amazon Works Council member Hedi Tounsi, labor sociologist Mayer-Ahuja, and State Secretary Leonie Gebers. Fahimi emphasized the importance for society as a whole of revaluing grassroots work, both materially and immaterially. But the grassroots workers around Würpel were undoubtedly at the center of the debate that evening.