Eminent Economists Express Skepticism Over Allianz CEO’s Proposal to Reintroduce a Day of Unpaid Leave for Sick Employees
Leading economists have expressed skepticism over Allianz CEO Oliver Bäte’s proposal to reintroduce a day of unpaid leave for employees who are absent due to illness, during which they would not receive a salary. According to Martin Werding, an economist, this proposal would actually drive some people to work despite being unwell, as they would have to forgo a significant portion of their monthly salary for a sick day.
Werding suggests that instead of reintroducing a day of unpaid leave, the focus should be on discussing possible solutions in a broader context. He proposes limiting the payment of sick leave to 80 percent of the salary for the first week of illness, as is already the case for the seventh week onwards. This change was implemented in 1996, but was later reversed.
Jürgen Wasem, a health economist at the University of Duisburg-Essen, sees the reintroduction of a day of unpaid leave as a suitable instrument, but believes it would be difficult to implement. Past experiences have shown that such measures would be negotiated away by trade unions in collective bargaining agreements. Therefore, Wasem thinks that the societal uproar that would be sparked by this topic for several months would be unnecessary.