German Tesla managers visit ‘sick’ employees at home

Absenteeism is peaking at the Tesla factory in Grünheide, near Berlin. Management has, therefore, decided to visit employees on sick leave at home to check whether their absence is legal.

In August, the sick leave rate among the 12,000 employees in Grünheide had risen to 17 percent; at the beginning of September, it was still at 11 percent, which is unacceptable. There was even an acute staff shortage on certain days of the week.

‘High work pressure’

The unannounced inspection visits by top managers were obviously not well received. Some workers slammed the door; others threatened to call the police. Human Resources Manager Erik Demmler emphasized that the intention was not to criticize or make demands of the employees – instead, they wanted to find out how people were doing and how they could help.

However, the conflict is not new. Employees had previously indicated dissatisfaction with ‘too high work pressure’ in the car factory. Earlier, Managing Director André Thierig had criticized some workers’ attitudes and said there was no room in his factory for people “who couldn’t get out of bed in the morning.” The company even tried positive measures by offering a €1,000 bonus for employees with low sick leave.

Justifiable

Whether the controversial home visits will help reduce sick employees remains to be seen. From a legal perspective, however, they are probably justifiable, as unannounced home visits by the employer are not prohibited – “at least if the employer suspects that something is wrong with the sick note.”