Sick Leave Hits Record Highs in Germany, Driven by Mental Health Challenges
Berlin – Germany is experiencing a surge in sick leave, reaching levels not seen before, with mental illnesses emerging as a key driver of prolonged absences. Recent data reveals a important increase in the duration of sick leave taken due to psychological issues, outpacing absences caused by common respiratory illnesses.
The abolition of telephone sick leave is not a viable solution to address rising sick leave rates, according to Carola Reimann, head of the AOK federal association. Similarly,proposals for an unpaid first day of sickness are deemed ineffective. Experts emphasize the critical importance of fostering healthy working conditions and cultivating positive corporate and management cultures to tackle the issue. While respiratory diseases account for the most frequent illnesses – averaging 5.9 days of absence – mental illnesses, though less common, result in substantially longer periods of downtime, averaging 28.5 days per case. Diagnoses of mental illnesses have been steadily increasing for years, becoming a “long-term driver of overall sick leave,” as stated by Schröder.
