> * Does any one know if this middle class problem is also a thing in Germany?

German here.

At this point, I think it's not yet a problem comparable to the US, but there is rising (perhaps overblown, but certainly not unfounded) fear of a social decline among the middle class.

Remember, the German employment environment (I'm struggling to find a good word) is different from the US. Trades are stronger and more respected, university education is free, social systems offer more protection (but only from outright poverty, not from social decline).

So the pressures are probably not felt a sharply. But there is growing worry.