cross-posted from: https://feddit.online/c/euro@feddit.online/p/1817064/germany-tightens-sick-leave-rules-medical-doctor-note-required-from-day-one-telephone-s
Germany’s Chancellor Merz:
We can no longer accept the extraordinarily high levels of sick leave in our companies.
We are abolishing sick leave by telephone and introducing the requirement to submit a medical certificate from the very first day of illness.
We know this is a tough decision. But we can no longer afford this competitive disadvantage caused by prolonged absences from work.
Do you continue to get paid when you’re sick? If no, the company is less likely to care about why they stop paying you until you show up again.
Even for work where sick days are unpaid, many businesses (especially small ones) are going to suffer having a worker missing. After all, workers are supposed to generate more revenue than their salary costs, so the excess value is still being lost when someone calls out sick.
We have no “sick days”. You’re sick, you get paid. After six weeks in a row, health insurance takes over and you still get 70% of your usual wage.