Dusseldorf The clinic management already has the first layoffs on the table. In the university hospital in Hanau, Hesse, it is feared that three to five percent of the employees will change jobs – because of the corona vaccination requirement, which will apply in the healthcare sector in six weeks.
A spokeswoman explains that the personnel situation is already tense in some areas. “Due to the obligation to vaccinate, the situation could become significantly worse in a specific area.”
As in Hanau, the first clinics and care facilities throughout Germany are complaining about layoffs related to compulsory vaccination in the healthcare sector. This is the result of a survey conducted by the Handelsblatt among operators and professional associations.
The facility-related vaccination requirement stipulates that employees in medical practices, clinics or nursing homes must prove by March 15 that they have been vaccinated or have recovered – or submit a certificate certifying that they cannot be vaccinated.
The already tense personnel situation in the German health care system will continue to worsen as a result of the compulsory vaccination: 200,000 employees are already missing in nursing alone. “The staff levels are so thin that any further gaps that arise cannot be closed,” says the German Nursing Council. The German Hospital Society (DKG) states that “problems can arise at individual locations”.
Dax companies are initially relaxed
What the healthcare industry is already experiencing could soon threaten the entire economy if politicians decide to make vaccination compulsory. But Dax companies and large family businesses are initially relaxed, as the Handelsblatt survey shows. According to RWE, Siemens and VW, for example, one does not want to speculate about the possible effects of compulsory vaccination.
Puma states: “Due to the very high vaccination rate in the company, compulsory vaccination would have no effect on our regular operations.” 96 percent of the employees at the sporting goods manufacturer are immunized.
Many industrial companies are more skeptical: According to Stefan Wolf, President of the Gesamtmetall employers’ association, 700,000 of the 3.9 million employees in the industry are not vaccinated. Should there be a ban on entry due to a general obligation to vaccinate, “that would be a total collapse,” he said in a recent interview.
Concerns are already great in the healthcare sector: The German Evangelical Association for Elderly Work and Care (Devap), which represents the diaconal institutions, reports: “There have already been a few layoffs”, and more are expected. Caritas, which operates nursing homes under Catholic sponsorship, reports that the first employees have switched to retail. The obligation to vaccinate will “tear large gaps and endanger the supply in some places”.
The effects vary regionally and according to the size of the facilities: while the university hospital in Dresden has already recorded people leaving, the operators in Munich and Dortmund are not reporting any major fluctuations. However: In Munich, for example, there is already a shortage of around 200 skilled workers.
Differences in clinic operators
The Fresenius clinics listed in the Dax and the Asklepios clinics have not seen any abnormalities so far. The largest local clinic operator says: “The experiences of other countries in which occupational vaccinations have been in force for some time have shown that the cancellation rate was extremely low.” The Berlin Charité even recorded an increase in nursing staff.
Read our other Handelsblatt surveys here:
Patient care could be at risk, especially in eastern Germany and parts of southern Germany: the evangelical association Devap sees a vaccination rate of 84 percent in the west and only 55 percent in the east. Caritas notes that vaccination rates in eastern Germany and in parts of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg are below 70 percent.
Nationwide, 92 percent of employees in hospitals are fully vaccinated, according to figures from the Robert Koch Institute from the beginning of January. Four percent were still completely unvaccinated at the beginning of the year.
This supposedly small number has a big impact: Even in hospitals with a vaccination rate of more than 95 percent, 42 percent of the operators expect staff shortages, according to figures from the hospital company DKG. This proves “how much even relatively small fluctuations can lead to problems in patient care”.
The nursing service operator Korian, who has so far received “isolated” dismissals, has noticed an increasing willingness to vaccinate among its employees for a few weeks. It is said that many undecided people would still hope for the dead vaccine.
The Novavax vaccine is scheduled to be delivered from February 21st. Healthcare workers should be prioritized when making appointments – and could actually be immunized by March 15 if the second vaccination is carried out after three weeks.
Healthcare companies must report to the health authorities in mid-March which employees are unvaccinated. The authorities can issue an entry ban. The employees would then be released without continued payment of wages. However, since many health authorities are currently overwhelmed, it is unclear how quickly they will react. Until then, unvaccinated employees cannot be fired. In practice, it will therefore be difficult to create rosters for the period after March 15th.
Professional associations and operators therefore criticize that not all labor law details have been clarified by a long shot. “It’s becoming increasingly unbearable,” says the Devap association. In addition, it is unclear “to whom exactly the vaccination applies,” said Markus Lewe, President of the German Association of Cities, in an interview at the weekend.
According to some observers, external service providers such as cleaning staff or craftsmen can also be affected. That would put an additional burden on clinics and nursing homes. For example, the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein expects staff shortages in these areas in particular.
In Austria – despite compulsory vaccination from February – 3G will initially apply at work
The consequences are still unclear if politicians decide to make vaccination compulsory and all sectors are affected. The Munich labor lawyer Wolfgang Lipinski assumes that companies will have to fire unvaccinated employees if they cannot work exclusively from home. The head of the employment agency, Detlef Scheele, said at the weekend that employers can reject an applicant if he is not vaccinated or recovered.
In Austria, compulsory vaccination will be introduced in February. For the time being, however, the 3G rule in the workplace will continue to apply there and those who have tested negative will also be granted access. Should there be an entry ban for those who are not immunized in this country, small companies in particular, where many employees are not immunized, will suffer.
Just like at MN Maschinenbau in Saxony. Of the approximately 100 employees, only 65 to 70 have been immunized. “A ban on entry for unvaccinated people would have fatal effects on production,” says entrepreneur Günther Bessinger. However, he is not worried about layoffs: after all, if vaccinations were compulsory, the staff would no longer be able to work in other areas either.
Concerns are smaller for the Dax companies and large family businesses because the vaccination rates are, according to their own statements, well above the national average of 74 percent. BASF, Bayer and Beiersdorf assume 90 percent, Eon even more than 95 percent.
Industry warns against passing on the consequences of compulsory vaccination to companies
The economy is divided on the introduction of compulsory vaccination. The biotech company Qiagen is clearly in favor of this. It could “save human lives, reduce the burden in hospitals and cushion the effects of the pandemic on the economy and society”.
The head of the logistics specialist Jungheinrich, Lars Brzoska, also says, referring to the “devastating” consequences of the pandemic: “The refusal of vaccination by a part of the population is no longer acceptable.” The fragrance manufacturer Symrise sees advantages for everyday life through compulsory vaccination because the tests no longer have to be carried out and checked daily by unvaccinated employees.
Most of the companies surveyed are reluctant. It is a “political question,” says Allianz. Eon and Vonovia make similar statements. BASF demands that such measures must be “practically implementable at our sites”.
The employers’ association BDI also recently warned that the consequences of mandatory vaccination “should not be passed on to companies”. The legislature would then have to “clearly regulate control and enforcement as soon as possible”. Exactly what the healthcare industry is currently missing.
Collaboration: Lazar Backovic, Maike Telgheder
More: Industry hesitates about compulsory vaccination and sees problems with enforcement