Amid persistently high sickness absence rates, the president of the Confederation of German Employers’ Associations (BDA), Rainer Dulger, has called for a fundamental reform of paid sick leave. Speaking to Die Welt, Dulger also argued for ending telephone-based sick notes. “International experience shows that the more generous paid sick leave is, the higher absenteeism becomes, especially in cases of minor illnesses,” Dulger told the newspaper, according to comments published on Thursday.
He said telephone sick leave certification should be “abolished,” describing it as a measure introduced during the pandemic that has since become “a gateway for abuse.” Video consultations, he said, would be a more modern and suitable alternative. Dulger also proposed limiting paid sick leave to a maximum of six weeks per year. Under current rules, employees are entitled to six weeks of continued pay per illness, meaning that under certain conditions they may receive paid sick leave multiple times within a single year.
In addition, Dulger called for ending continued payment of bonuses for night work, Sundays, and overtime during periods of illness. “Anyone who is not working is also not subject to additional strain,” he said. He also argued that the medical service of Germany’s statutory health insurers should be allowed to review cases of incapacity for work more frequently and more quickly, noting that such reviews are currently rare.
The debate follows a rise in absenteeism since 2022. In 2024, employers spent around 82 billion euros on continued wage payments during illness, according to calculations by the employer-affiliated German Economic Institute (IW). This figure does not include production losses or lost value creation. According to a recent study by the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, sickness-related absences caused production losses totaling 134 billion euros in 2024. On average, each employee was absent due to illness for 20.8 days during the year.
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