Medical certificate from the first day of illness: Labor Minister questions mandatory requirement
Federal Labor Minister Bärbel Bas has publicly questioned the mandatory requirement for a medical certificate from the first day of illness, which had been agreed upon by the Union and the SPD. "I am loyal to the coalition, but we should still ask ourselves whether this makes sense," the SPD chairwoman told the Funke Media Group. She criticized, in particular, the planned exceptions: if a mandate is introduced and subsequently 95 exceptions are written into it, the question arises as to whether it is needed at all. Her concern is that employees might go to the doctor on the first day even for a minor infection, turning a short absence into a full week of sick leave.
All employees in Germany would be affected. Currently, the rule is: anyone who is ill for longer than three calendar days must submit a medical certificate by the following working day at the latest. It is important to know that employers are already allowed to request a certificate earlier, even from the first day. Many employees are unaware of this. Therefore, what would be new is not the possibility, but the legal obligation for everyone.
The new regulation has not yet been finalized. The parliamentary group leaders of the Union and the SPD adopted a paper at their retreat in Münster on Friday, in which the mandatory medical certificate from the first day of illness is listed as one of the projects to be implemented by the end of the year. The Union parliamentary group states that the compromise stands and will not be renegotiated. Bas has announced that she will not submit an implementation proposal as long as the Minister of Health has not regulated the associated appointment guarantee for specialists and stroke prevention. A draft law, a date, and transitional rules are currently missing.
For you, this means: until a law comes into force, the previous rule applies. Nevertheless, check your employment contract or collective bargaining agreement to see if your company already requires a certificate from the first day, as this is already permissible and common in many businesses. In any case, report your inability to work to your employer immediately, regardless of when the certificate is due. If you are unsure, ask your works council or your trade union.