Days off: Labor judges decide in favor of sick employees

The Federal Labor Court has strengthened the rights of sick employees who could not use paid days off.

The entitlement to days off, which would be granted instead of an additional allowance under the collective agreement, continues to exist in the event of illness-related incapacity to work, the highest labor judges decided on Wednesday (10 AZR 99 /21).

In principle, the entitlement is not limited to the calendar year.

"Only if the granting of days off for personal reasons - for example because of a long-lasting illness - is not possible in the entire (remaining) calendar year does the right to time off expire," the court said.

In this case, the entitlement to additional pay under the collective agreement is revived.

The Federal Labor Court ruled on a case in which there was a dispute about the interpretation of the general collective agreement for the metal and electrical industry in North Rhine-Westphalia of November 8, 2018 and the collective agreement on additional wages for the metal and electrical industry in North Rhine-Westphalia of February 14, 2018.

The employer side had argued that the entitlement to the days off had already been fulfilled by setting them;

whether the employee can actually use the free time is irrelevant.