Dennis Radtke, chairman of the Christian Democratic Workers’ Association (CDA), expressed concern about the planned reform. “We must not create the impression that people are lazy,” he said on ZDF’s Morgenmagazin. He pointed out that there have always been employees who “play hooky.” However, the real problem lies with long-term sick leave, not short absences.
Radtke suggested reconsidering the plans. He noted a concern that employees who previously called in sick for just one day might now get a sick note for three or five days. This echoed objections the CDA had already raised shortly after the reform proposals became known.
Union and SPD had agreed in the coalition committee to legally require a medical certificate from the first day of illness – previously, the requirement only applied from the fourth day. At the same time, telephone sick notes, introduced during the coronavirus pandemic, are to be abolished. Employees do not have to submit the certificate on the first day; it can be provided later, according to government circles. Companies are to continue to be able to make their own arrangements.
Friedrich Merz (CDU) justified the plan with the aim of reducing sick leave rates. The German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), however, warned that the new regulation could lead to more infections due to increased visits to doctors’ offices, and thus to more days of absence.
Source: www.zeit.de
