Corporatism as usual? – Staat und organisierte Wirtschaftsinteressen in der Coronakrise

The article explores the relationship between the state and organised business interests in Germany during the Covid-19 crisis of 2020. Two questions are addressed: Whether and how do employers’ associations, business interest associations and economic chambers articulate themselves in the context of the Covid-19 crisis? Does their interaction with the state follow the pattern of a dedicated ‘crisis corporatism’? The starting point is the concept of path-dependence and the revitalisation of established patterns of state-business-interaction in the crisis. The study focuses on the period between March 2020 and February 2021. Based on an investigation of the forms and frequencies of state-business-interactions, three phases are identified and then analysed in detailed case studies. For the early phase of the Covid-19 pandemic (March–June 2020) a) information offers and political demands of employers’ associations, business interest associations and economic chambers are examined quantitatively and b) the congruence between the groups’ demands and the political measures introduced with the economic stimulus package is investigated. For the second phase (July–September 2020) a case study of the branch-specific ‘automotive corporatism’ during the crisis is presented. Finally, the analysis focuses on the growing distance between business’ demands and government in the third phase (October 2020–February 2021). As a result, the article observes a ‘corporatism without combustion engine’, which is characterised and maintained by resource dependencies, network ties and a crisis-corporatist exchange between government and organised business interests.