Amid a sharp rise in absenteeism in Germany since the pandemic, a debate has emerged on whether the country should abolish pay on the first day of sick leave. With this in mind, several employers' federations are also calling for the scrapping of the electronic sick leave system, introduced at the beginning of 2023, which is accused of having a 'facilitating' and bureaucratic effect.
The high level of absenteeism is currently the subject of debate in Germany. According to a study by the DAK health insurance fund, which analysed data from 2.4 million active health insurance policyholders for the years 2019 to 2023, days off rose suddenly by 40% between 2021 and 2022. The average number of days off work, per person per year, rose from around 15 days in previous years to almost 20 days, and has remained at this level ever since. According to Germany’s statutory health...
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Article authors
Thomas Schnee
Freelance