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While some moved to the home office, others had to stay outside.
This was the case with building cleaners, cleaners and janitors.
The lockdown in spring brought many of them additional jobs.
It is precisely these industries that should provide more protection against infection; their labor is in demand.
But that wasn't the only challenge.
With the lockdown, the number of sick leave also skyrocketed, says Johannes Bungart, managing director of the federal guild of the building cleaning trade.
The sickness rate doubled in April and in some companies was even in the high double-digit range.
Now the cleaning companies expect this wave to repeat itself.
“Of course we fear rising sick leave rates in the coming months,” says Bungart, who represents companies with a total of 700,000 employees.
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Infections would increase in winter, minor symptoms of illness would be taken more seriously than usual due to the pandemic. But he also sees another reason: "Last but not least, childcare cannot be guaranteed for one or the other employee in the hard lockdown."
The schools are closed and the grandparents cannot be used due to the increased risk of severe Covid-19 courses - some only have sick leave as a way out.
A survey by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), which is available to WELT AM SONNTAG, now shows that quite a few employees get a yellow ticket precisely because of this need.
"The figures show that the sickness rate rose unusually sharply in the first wave of corona," says Claus Michelsen, Head of Economic Policy.
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In other words, exactly at the time when schools and daycare centers were closed for weeks.
Almost 6.5 percent of those with statutory health insurance were registered as unable to work on April 1.
On average between 2012 and 2019, that was not even four percent.
In absolute numbers, that makes a difference of almost a million people in employment - in statutory health insurance alone.
From the economist's point of view, this is due not only to the actual illnesses but also to the simplified sick leave by telephone.
“This was probably also used to ensure care services,” says Michelsen.
It is noticeable that during the partial lockdown from autumn, when schools and daycare centers remained open, the sick leave rate remained at an almost normal level.
In addition, women in particular were on sick leave more than average, as the survey shows.
“These are all indications of such a mechanism,” says Michelsen.
Economists expect more sick leave
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On April 1, for example, the statutory health insurance companies reported that women were sick at just over seven percent - one percentage point higher than that of men.
In the other months this difference was significantly smaller.
The DIW economist therefore believes that a new wave of sick leave is possible in the coming weeks: “Something similar can be expected for the winter.” After all, many schools and daycare centers should initially remain closed after the holidays.
If the number of infections does not drop significantly, it could stay that way for longer.
"This again presents families with the challenge of ensuring care," says Michelsen.
The economic research institute Prognos investigated on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs how big the childcare problem was during the first lockdown.
According to the recently published study, more than half of the parents (55 percent) found the reorganization of childcare to be difficult.
Every fifth person was not satisfied with the solution found.
Single parents, the self-employed and couples where both parents work at least 25 hours a week are particularly frequent.
For the current lockdown, federal and state parents have promised more support.
If they stay at home to look after their children, they should continue to receive wages.
This should not only apply when facilities are closed, but also when the compulsory attendance is no longer required or for alternate classes.
However, parents are only reimbursed 67 percent of the loss of earnings and a maximum of 2016 euros per month.
The telephone sick leave relieves the medical practice
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A sick note is more lucrative, especially since it is made so easy for employees.
Even during the first lockdown, employees could call for sick leave if they had symptoms.
This exception has been in effect again since mid-October - and was recently extended until the end of March.
From the point of view of the general practitioner, this is a cost-benefit analysis.
"The harm of not giving a symptomatic and sick patient sick leave is much greater," says Dirk Heinrich, federal chairman of the Virchowbund, who represents the resident doctors.
The telephone sick leave relieves the practices and prevents possible infections.
“It's like dodging,” says Heinrich.
There are always a few black sheep, but the vast majority of patients are honest.
General practitioners in particular know their patients very well.
“Based on the symptoms described and their temporal course in combination with the medical history, you are able to assess whether the information is plausible,” says Heinrich.
Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn (CDU) wants patients to be able to get sick leave from the doctor via video consultation even after the corona crisis.
At least that is what a draft law provides.
The employers are against it: "We firmly reject any further dilution of the current regulations for the issuing of a certificate of incapacity for work in the context of a video consultation," the employers' association BDA told WELT AM SONNTAG.
The high level of sick leave depresses production output
The unusually high level of sick leave in spring had consequences for the economy, says DIW economist Michelsen.
"That should have depressed the volume of work and thus the production output."
For the second quarter of 2020, he assumes that the additional sick leave - despite all the uncertainty in the estimate - will have affected every 200th of the hours normally worked.
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However: "The reduction in work performance via the instrument of short-time work was much more important," says the expert.
In the second quarter of the year, according to DIW calculations, about eight percent of the crisis-related lower working hours of employees subject to social insurance were compensated for.
The fact that, despite the partial lockdown in autumn, the sickness rate is only at the average level of previous years could also have another cause.
Serious illnesses, of all things, are apparently being pushed by the employees because of the corona crisis.
After a brief increase in the first quarter of 2020 during the first wave of the pandemic, absenteeism due to cancer, mental health problems and musculoskeletal disorders has decreased significantly.
This emerges from an evaluation of the health report of the health insurance company Barmer, which is available to WELT AM SONNTAG.
"Because of concerns about a Covid 19 infection, many patients go to the doctor less often," says Ursula Marschall, head physician at Barmer.
However, urgently needed treatments should not be put on the back burner.
More understanding for employees required
With the corona pandemic, for example, absenteeism due to cancer fell year-on-year.
The average decline between April and June was 1.2 percent.
The effects on sick leave due to mental illness are particularly clear.
In the second quarter, the year-on-year decline was an average of 5.5 percent.
It can be assumed that Corona actually leads to more psychological problems due to the restrictions, says Marschall.
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Bungart from the building cleaning association demands more understanding that increasing sick leave and illness costs are a further challenge for the companies.
But he does not want to condemn those who get a yellow certificate due to a lack of childcare options: "In this historical exceptional situation, all of this is understandable."
This text is from WELT AM SONNTAG. We are happy to deliver them to your home on a regular basis.
Source: Welt am Sonntag