"The Use of Forced Laborers and Its Decades-Long Consequences in Family Firms"

To this day, only a very small proportion of family businesses in Germany have come to terms with their role in the use of forced laborers during the Second World War. They are therefore repeatedly confronted with the topic by the public, in different waves and with different consequences. Even today, decades later, the silence or ignoring of the use of forced labor is a particular problem within the business families and between the generations. Alongside the lack of understanding about the use of forced laborers at the time, there is an increasing lack of understanding about the inappropriate way of dealing with this past.
The main research question is: has the lack of direct confrontation with the injustice of the use of forced laborers created a continuing problem?
The essay uses the case study of the household appliance manufacturer Miele – located in Gütersloh, Germany - and is based on original sources from the time of the use of forced laborers, the handling of the phenomenon in the decades following the Second World War and the experiences of the current generation. The primary sources are located in public archives and from Miele. The case is embedded in a broader examination of the state of the reappraisal of the history of the Second World War in Germany and a comparison with other family businesses.