Whether back problems or mental health conditions are involved, the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) believes employers also have a responsibility when it comes to reducing sickness levels. “The high number of sick notes for mental health conditions and musculoskeletal disorders such as back problems is a cause for concern,” said DGB board member Anja Piel in comments to the Funke Media Group newspapers on Wednesday. “Employers can and must do more against this,” she demanded.
In this context, Piel called for “better workplace prevention, reducing work-related stress where possible, and more effective protective measures for the health of employees.” At the same time, she warned against placing workers on sick leave under general suspicion. According to DGB surveys, 63 percent of employees worked last year despite being ill.
“The consequential costs of this bad practice, going to work while sick, infecting colleagues, and increasing the risk of workplace accidents, are demonstrably about twice as high as the costs of sickness-related absences,” Piel cautioned. She also attributed the higher sickness rate this autumn to the new electronic sick note system, which records all sick reports completely.
In contrast, Gitta Connemann, federal chairwoman of the Mittelstands- und Wirtschaftsunion (MIT), pointed to sick notes obtained by phone. “The fact is: the hurdles for obtaining a sick note are too low,” she told the Funke newspapers. “Phone sick notes were right during the pandemic. But today we have other options. Modern video consultations allow for a significantly more precise diagnosis.” Connemann called for “putting the system back on solid footing.”
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