"We assume and also expect the companies to solve the sticking issues as soon as possible," Economy Ministry spokesman Andreas Audretsch said during a regular government news conference.
He added: "It is about thousands of jobs, which could be affected by shorter work hours, and the responsibility to tackle these problems constructively is very high."
(Reporting by Hans-Edzard Busemann; Writing by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Michael Nienaber)