Even for Germany, this is pretty freakin' Germany:
Rising sick leave rates may be bad news for German companies at a time the economy is already ailing — but for private eye Marcus Lentz, it has been a boon for his business.
He is seeing a record number of requests from firms for his agency to check up on employees suspected of calling in sick when they are actually fit to work.
The issue does seem to be on a notable increase in the country: Workers there "on average took 15.1 days of sick leave last year, up from 11.1 days in 2021." Mercedes-Benz chief executive Ola Kallenius claimed that "absenteeism in Germany is sometimes twice as high as in other European countries."
But...really? Private detectives?
I suppose there's some sense to that. If you suspect that a ton of your employees are calling in sick but are really just out sunning themselves on their balconies or watching soccer down at the pub, you're gonna wanna find out.
Leave it to Elon Musk, of course, to take it one creative step further:
Elon Musk's electric car giant Tesla went further, reportedly sending managers worried about high illness-related absences at its German factory to personally check up on employees on sick leave at their homes.
Bet those managers didn't think they'd be making Tesla house calls on sick day employees!
There are, to be sure, strong economic incentives for figuring out if your employees are grifting you this way: Detective Lentz noted that "in many cases where people are pretending to be sick for long periods, they are doing work on the side."
He gave the example of a person who was helping out at his wife's business while officially off sick. Others, he said, have taken long-term sick leave to renovate their properties.
While it can be expensive to hire a detective, Lentz said firms will be looking to get rid of highly unproductive workers at a time of mounting economic woes.
Bottom line: If you call in sick in Germany, be sure you stay in bed, or at least set up a fake, a la Ferris Bueller.
P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇
