BMW was changing the way Germans work long before it was cool. BMW reforms go back to the 1950s, when workers helped persuade a big shareholder to save the company from being sold to outsiders. In return, the employees made wage and work-rule concessions to save jobs. The enduring legacy is feted inside the company as the “BMW Formula for Work,” based on flexible schedules that apply to blue and white collar alike, while offering the security that Germans crave. 

　　The difference between BMW and the latecomers to reform is striking. At BMW, there is no overtime pay, but job security is guaranteed. Labor relations are so good that BMW is opening a €1 billion plant in Leipzig next year, while rivals look for cheaper labor to the east. 

　　There’s sweet revenge in this tale. The outsider from whom BMW saved itself was Daimler. A series of blunders had nearly bankrupted BMW. Horrified, workers persuaded shareholders that BMW could survive on its own. Together they scrapped a cheap “bubble car,” refocusing on sporty cars and revamping labor rules. 

　　The way of work is evolving. In 1986 BMW introduced flexible shifts to its Regensburg plant. Now workers put in overtime as needed and place extra hours in a time bank, to be withdrawn as time off during slow periods. The result is more paid time off: one worker recently tapped his account for an eight-month holiday in South Africa. The 1950s crisis reshaped BMW’s DNA and its culture makes it possible to keep work in Germany.