When Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the Nomos manufactory in Glashütte, Saxony, on Thursday, it will not only be because of the quality of the watches produced there.

A good six months before the state elections, he also wants to make a political statement in the eastern federal state. Nomos is one of the companies in Saxony that took a clear political stance against populism and right-wing radicalism early on. The company is part of the growing "Business Council for Democracy" (BC4D) network, which now includes 125 companies that also train their employees in democracy and open-mindedness.

In view of the polls, the background to this is the concern that a very strong AfD could damage the regional economy. After all, according to the latest poll, the AfD is clearly ahead of the CDU of incumbent Minister President Michael Kretschmer with 35 percent. Alarm bells are therefore ringing, especially among companies that rely on foreign skilled workers. "Many companies are realizing that they need to get involved and also talk to their employees," said Marie-Christine Ostermann, President of the Association of Family Entrepreneurs, to the Reuters news agency. Lars Wagner, head of aircraft supplier MTU Aero Engines, announced last week that he would address the danger posed by growing political extremes at works meetings. "We are simply setting an example."

CHANGE THROUGH EVERYDAY EXPERIENCEThis is why not only BC4D is experiencing an upswing, but also the network "Economy for a Cosmopolitan Saxony", which was founded in 2016 and now has 110 member companies. "Demand is rising sharply, especially in view of the elections," says Sylvia Pfefferkorn, Deputy Spokeswoman of the Executive Board, to Reuters. According to Elisabeth Niejahr, Managing Director of "Strengthening Democracy", the nationwide BC4D initiative - a joint project of the Hertie Foundation, the Bosch Foundation and the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) - now has 125 member companies. In addition to Nomos, these include global corporations such as VW, Deutsche Bahn and Lufthansa, as well as Evonik and Deutsche Bank.

What unites BC4D and the Saxon network in particular: "We are not interested in training against the AfD," emphasizes Niejahr. "We are training FOR something - for democracy, for openness to the world." Judith Borowski from the Nomos management team takes a different view, however: "A party that is classified as definitely right-wing extremist in Saxony and which the churches warn against can and must be named," Borowoski tells Reuters. "We have to show our political colors."

BC4D and its member companies rely on an approach that may not sound spectacular, but is intended to have a broad impact: "We offer free training in the workplace, but rely on a snowball system," says Niejahr. Once employees have been trained, they should and can take on further training for colleagues internally. "Our experience is that it is much better when people themselves recognize patterns in political debates," says Niejahr, explaining the reasoning behind this. Judith Borowksi from the Nomos management team agrees - although she avoids using the term "training". "The term is contaminated in East Germany, many people associate it with agitation - we prefer to talk about workshops."

The Saxony Economic Initiative is also convinced that we need to start with the employees themselves and their environment. "Even employees with clearly right-wing tattoos can look after a trainee from Syria - and then realize that they are good for the company," said Pfefferkorn. "Change doesn't happen through announcements from above, but through everyday experiences."

"IT DOESN'T WORK ANY OTHER WAY"

In all cases, the background to these efforts is that company bosses are of the opinion that they need to take a political stance against right-wing extremism, for example - which is why a number of CEOs across Germany made public statements following reports of a conference in Potsdam that allegedly dealt with mass deportations of people with a migration background. In view of the growing demand for labor, business and politics see the need to bring more skilled workers from abroad to Germany. This can only be achieved with a climate of openness to the world.

In the eastern federal states, these discussions with employees are considered even more urgent. "Because it is clear that more than 30 percent support for the AfD in surveys is reflected in corresponding proportions in many companies," says Pfefferkorn. However, there are clear differences: companies such as Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW) in Dresden, which the Chancellor will also visit on Thursday, already employ staff from more than 30 nationalities.

Like politicians from the SPD, Greens, CDU/CSU and FDP, Pfefferkorn also praises the importance of the demonstrations since reporting on the conference in Potsdam. Since then, interest in their work has increased enormously. "It is very important that demonstrations are held in small towns in the East. There may only be 300 people on the market square - but they see that there are others who share the welcoming culture and basic democratic values."

The retreat of many people, the fear of a fierce political confrontation, is seen as a decisive reason for the rise of right-wing and left-wing populists. "I also know mayors who no longer want to express themselves politically," says a leading politician in Saxony. "That's exactly why we want to motivate employees to show their colors again. There's no other way," says Pfefferkorn.

(Edited by Scot W. Stevenson; if you have any queries, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets)).

- by Andreas Rinke