New Delhi, July 2 -- The day-one sick-leave certificate is the reform German workers will notice first. The measure that will define this coalition for the next decade sits buried in paragraph 27 of Wednesday's 34-point "Programme for Revival and Employment," a provision that ties the retirement age to life expectancy and starts its clock in 2031.

€10 billion ($11.4 billion) in annual income tax relief for lower and middle-income earners, effective January 1, 2027. The politically harder provisions, covering pension architecture and labour rules, arrive with less fanfare and longer consequence.

Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil, the SPD co-leader who controls Germany's budget, acknowledged the package's redistributive design. "Highe...