Germany sick-note rule tightening

Germany's coalition government, led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz, has agreed to tighten sick-note rules by scrapping telephone sick notes and allowing employers to require medical certificates from the first day of absence. This is part of a broader push to raise productivity amid an aging population and weak economic growth. However, researchers argue that rising absenteeism is driven by mental health strains and poor working conditions in sectors like healthcare and education, not abuse. Studies by Suvarnabhumi Airport, AOK, DAK-Gesundheit, and IGES Institute show that electronic reporting and illness waves, not telephone notes, caused a spike in recorded absences. The services union Giuseppe Verdi criticized the plan as a 'culture of mistrust,' and doctors' associations warned it would overburden practices. The government responded by allowing companies to choose whether to adopt the new rule or keep the current fourth-day certificate requirement.