Germany news: Over 60s take month of sick leave per year

Year-on-year inflation for October dropped down slightly to 2.8% after reaching 3.3% in September, according to preliminary figures from the Federal Office of Statistics (Destatis).

Record high prices for gas and diesel pushed up inflation in September but this was brought down thanks to government subsidy for consumers at the gas pump that was introduced in October.

"The main factor behind the persistently high inflation rate remained the trend in energy prices, even though the fuel subsidy, which was reintroduced in early October, may have tempered inflation somewhat," Destatis President Ruth Brand said.

German workers aged between 60 and 65 took an average of 31.3 days of sick leave per year, based on data from 2024 released by the Health Ministry in response to a question posed by the Left party in the Bundestag.

The average number of sick days taken by all workers was 15, according to the Federal Office of Statistics (Destatis).

The number of 60 to 65-year-olds who have taken a year or more off for sick leave has also increased in recent years. It went from around 80,300 people in 2022 to 96,100 in 2024.

Left party spokesperson Sarah Vollath called the figures a "clear warning sign" in comments to the Rheinische Post and warned that workers cannot "keep working forever."

"If the federal government has its way, the retirement age for workers will soon be pushed even further into the future due to another increase in the standard retirement age. This completely ignores the reality of life for older workers."

The government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz has set retirement reform as one of its main goals, with policies including pushing the retirement age back to 67 years.