Deliveries to companies Farms are waiting for more vaccine

Status: 14.06.2021 12:44 p.m.

Company doctors have been able to vaccinate their employees for a week. But the amount of vaccine allocated is nowhere near sufficient. In the second week, fewer vaccine doses are delivered than in the first. From Jens Eberl, WDR BMW has big plans. The automobile manufacturer has set up a total of 29 vaccination lines at its locations in Germany. In Munich alone there are six vaccination lines at two locations. The company said it could do up to 2,500 vaccinations a day. This means that the entire workforce in Germany can be vaccinated within a few weeks. The problem: there isn’t enough vaccine. A little more than 5000 employees were vaccinated in the first week. The situation is similar with the consumer goods manufacturer Henkel. A vaccination center was set up in a company building in the immediate vicinity of the factory premises in Düsseldorf. Up to 1500 employees per week can be vaccinated. In the first week, however, there were only 640.

Fewer vaccine doses in the second week

“Many companies have prepared themselves really well,” says Wolfgang Panter, President of the Association of German Company and Company Doctors (VDBW). “6300 company doctors are available nationwide and have ordered vaccines.” But it is only arriving slowly. The distribution is based on the number of company doctors in the company. Last week there were 102 doses per doctor. This week it should be 84. “Originally, 804 cans per head were planned, but it was clear that this would never be the case,” said Panter. The company doctors are now relying heavily on July. Here one reckons that the vaccination turbo will be switched on. Be prepared.

FAQ 06/08/2021

High demand from the staff

At Thyssenkrupp, vaccinations are carried out every five minutes at the Essen site, on four vaccination lines, with seven doctors from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Should more vaccine be delivered, vaccinations can also be carried out in the evening and on weekends and a 5th vaccination line can also be used. 50,000 people work at Currenta, which manages and operates one of the largest chemical sites. They had ordered 20,000 doses here; if these had arrived, the vaccination would be finished in two to three weeks. But only 3000 came. According to the company, the vaccination lines of Deutsche Telekom have a capacity of up to 10,000 vaccinations per week. Telekom has 89,000 employees in Germany. Due to the approval of priority group 3 by the federal states, vaccinations had already been carried out in the company. The company expects up to 30,000 employees to take advantage of the opportunity to be vaccinated by company doctors. Telekom has set up 18 vaccination lines nationwide for this purpose.

06/02/2021

IT facilitates rapid processes

Many companies have also adapted their IT to vaccinate. For example, BASF has developed its own online booking system together with an IT service provider. Employees can use this to register. The navigation along the entire Impfstraße is completely digitized from check-in to check-out. The vaccination center went into operation on April 14th. Up to and including Friday, around 16,000 BASF employees had received an initial vaccination. Initially, the vaccination sequence prescribed by the state of Rhineland-Palatinate was followed and priority groups II and III were vaccinated. Since June 7, all BASF employees at the Ludwigshafen site have been able to register for a vaccination appointment. At the Vonovia real estate group, a random generator determines who receives a vaccination offer for which location based on the activity performed. First, the random number generator selects employees with direct customer contact.

Prioritization canceled in many places

In the meantime, many companies have completely removed the prioritization. The Deutsche Post says that there is no longer any personal prioritization in the sequence of vaccinations. “Through the choice of location and the allocation of appointments, we ensure that employees in the operational area have at least equal access to operational vaccination appointments,” says the company. At RWE, employees have been able to make appointments using an online tool or by telephone since last Monday. RWE does not plan to prioritize vaccinations. The President of the Association of German Company and Company Doctors has established that every company has a different approach to prioritization. From his point of view, employees who are exposed to a higher risk should still be given preference, for example field staff or fitters; People who have a lot of contacts. Of course, you can’t dictate that, says Panter.

Corona protection in companies Are employers allowed to force vaccination?

Status: 08.06.2021 7:13 p.m.

Since the beginning of the week, company doctors have also been able to vaccinate against Covid-19. But what about legally? Can companies require their staff to be vaccinated? And are they allowed to grant privileges to those who have been vaccinated? From Jens Eberl, WDR The companies have a great interest in preventing infections with the coronavirus and sick leave. This is why many employers want their employees to be vaccinated. With the start of vaccinations by the company doctors, various legal issues between employers and employees come to the fore. An overview.

Can the employer oblige his staff to vaccinate?

Employees only need to be vaccinated if there is a legal obligation to do so. There is no statutory vaccination requirement with Covid-19. “However, special features apply in facilities such as hospitals, prevention or rehabilitation facilities and medical practices,” says the Brühl-based specialist lawyer for labor law, Michael Felser. “They must ensure that all measures required by the state of the art of medical science are taken there to prevent infections and the spread of pathogens. Curiously, however, this does not apply in care facilities for the elderly, although the problem here is likely to be comparable”, so Felser. In the health care facilities mentioned, the employer cannot force employees to vaccinate either. However, he must ensure that non-vaccinated people pose no risk to patients. Patient protection can therefore make it necessary that non-vaccinated people can no longer work in certain areas.

Do employees have to inform the employer about their vaccination status?

Actually, there is no obligation to provide information about the personal vaccination status to the employer. However, the Gelsenkirchen labor lawyer Arndt Kempgens emphasizes that companies have to take corona protective measures for their employees. But they could only do that if the corona vaccination status was known. Kempgens concludes from this that in connection with Corona, under labor law – as an exception – there could be an obligation on the part of employees to notify the vaccination status and, under certain circumstances, to prove it.

Are vaccination incentives such as bonus payments from the employer permitted?

Employers could pay a “vaccination bonus”, for example through a one-off sum of money, vouchers or extra vacation days. Lawyer Felser says: “This is not entirely uncritical, because rewards can exert undue pressure not to exercise one’s rights. For example, courts have only declared rewards for employees who rarely get sick to be admissible under strict conditions.” The trade unions consider incentives for those willing to vaccinate to be permissible. However, they have a say in any case, as such a bonus is subject to co-determination. Kempgens emphasizes, however, that it must be fair: “There must not only be a bonus for those who don’t like vaccinations as an incentive to vaccinate, but if so, then for everyone.”

Can the employer exert “vaccination pressure”? Can the staff defend themselves against this?

If there is no statutory vaccination requirement, the employer cannot exert any pressure, neither with instructions nor with threats such as transfer or even warnings and dismissal. Such measures would be illegal. However, attorney Kempgens reports: “We are currently hearing more and more of such cases in legal practice. Pressure is exerted to convince those unwilling to vaccinate.” In extreme cases, employees can even defend themselves against this with an action for an injunction before the labor courts.

Are professional disadvantages possible if you don’t get vaccinated?

If there is no compulsory vaccination, the employer cannot differentiate according to whether someone is vaccinated or not or whether they have not wanted to be vaccinated in the past, as long as there was no obligation to do so. In medical institutions, however, the employer can reject applicants if they are not vaccinated and do not want to be vaccinated. Lawyer Kempgens, however, restricts: “Unvaccinated employees require other protective measures in the company and also lead to disagreements among the employees. For this reason, non-vaccinated employees will certainly not be preferred in the company in the near future.”

Are employers allowed to distinguish between vaccinated and non-vaccinated people?

“In my opinion, they even have to,” says Kempgens. “As with official measures, labor law restrictions are more difficult to justify for vaccinated people, while labor law protective measures have to be stronger for non-vaccinated people.” Felser believes privileges are conceivable, such as the earlier return of vaccinated employees from the home office to the office or the use of communal facilities such as the canteen. However, the incentive or pressure from such preferences should not be disproportionate.

From Ingrid Bertram, WDR At the toilet paper manufacturer Hakle in Düsseldorf, the machines run in three shifts. 250 employees work here. With the corona crisis, no employee can be dispensed with anymore. And at the latest when one of his engineers was in the intensive care unit, Managing Director Volker Jung knew that no other of his employees should experience that. He has been trying to get the vaccine since January, but so far in vain. The tents for the vaccinations are ready, extra rooms are reserved and the company doctor has recruited doctors who are actually retired for the vaccinations. Basically, it could start – but patience is required instead. Will it all pay off? Probably not on paper: the company has already spent 300,000 euros on the PCR tests. The vaccination route will cost a lot less. But Volker Jung believes that two thirds of his workforce are willing to vaccinate. At least he wants to offer them something. He doesn’t want to lose anyone.

Persuasion by company doctors

Ralf Stoffels also has to be patient. He heads the BIW Isolierstoffe company. He would like to organize the vaccination through the company medical center. Not only his 550 employees, but even the entire Hagen-Ennepe-Ruhr industrial park could be supplied via this. But here, too, the vaccine is missing. Ralf Stoffels, who is also President of the North Rhine-Westphalia Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is convinced that companies can better reach many people with vaccinations. “Many of the employees do not even accept the voluntary offers,” says Stoffels. He’s already observing this in the voluntary tests. In other words, everything that costs time and does not fit into everyday work becomes a hurdle. “In the company it would be organizationally easier for many, and the company doctor could still do some persuasion.” Because most of Stoffel’s employees work in shifts, come from Eastern Europe or are refugees and trained in the company. Knowledge of the how and why of vaccination is often rudimentary.

Previous illnesses mostly unknown

But even if there are some arguments in favor of immunization at the company doctor – even Anette Wahl-Wachendorf from the Association of German Company and Company Doctors does not know when the first vaccinations will arrive in the company. “Many companies are in the starting blocks,” says the organization’s vice president. But there is actually still a lot to be clarified: For example, it must be ensured in the companies that they are regularly supplied by large pharmacies, as the mRNA vaccines can only be stored in the refrigerator for a few days. In addition, it has not yet been clarified who is liable in the event of vaccination reactions or side effects. “For that there should now be a basic state liability,” said Wahl-Wachendorf. And ultimately it must also be clear that the prioritization in the company no longer applies automatically, because after all, a company doctor can vaccinate according to age, but cannot take previous illnesses into account, as he usually does not know them. The company doctor believes that it would be better to first consider those who have the most customer contacts. But above all, none of this should entail any further bureaucratic effort. Because now it is a matter of vaccinating as many people as possible.

If, from June, company doctors can also be supplied with vaccines, as the Federal Minister of Health said Jens Spahn announced on Monday , the Deutsche Bahn wants to vaccinate its employees themselves. For this purpose, vaccination centers are to be set up at at least ten locations in Germany. “The first are now being built in Munich and Nuremberg,” said a spokeswoman. No other locations were known at first. Which vaccine will be used has not yet been determined. As soon as enough vaccine is available, as many “systemically important employees as possible should receive a vaccination offer from their employer”. The group assumes that around half of the employees in Germany are classified as systemically relevant. Many of them belong to group 3 in the federal corona vaccination regulation. This includes 60 to 70-year-olds and people with a medical history, but also people who “work in particularly relevant positions in institutions and companies of critical infrastructure”. According to the vaccination ordinance, this also includes transport and traffic. Personnel director Martin Seiler emphasized that the decision to vaccinate is voluntary. There will also be no vaccination privileges, neither for employees nor for customers.

BASF pioneers

The chemical company BASF is one of the pioneers in vaccinations by company doctors. Employees from the Ludwigshafen headquarters can go there have been vaccinated since last Wednesday . A vaccination center was set up for this purpose – with vaccination booths, waiting and rest rooms. The vaccine from BioNTech is used first. Vaccinations are carried out in the order specified by the state: Initially, only employees with previous illnesses such as diabetes have the opportunity to do so. The group expects to be able to vaccinate up to 4,000 employees in the coming weeks. Most of the other major German companies from industry, trade and finance listed in the DAX and MDAX are also preparing for vaccinations for their employees, according to surveys. The insurance group Allianz has set up its own vaccination lines at several locations. A total of 27 vaccination lines have been operational at 15 different sites in the group since Monday. The chemical and pharmaceutical company Bayer also hopes to be able to start in the second quarter. The Düsseldorf-based consumer goods company Henkel has also provided a vaccination center.

Vaccinate 1000 employees daily

Telekom reports that it can offer its employees vaccinations at 18 German locations and that it is able to vaccinate 80 percent of its employees in Germany within two months. At the automotive supplier Continental, a good 1000 employees in Germany could be vaccinated every day, announced the DAX company from Hanover. “Our company doctors are ready,” said a spokeswoman for the German press agency. The energy company RWE is also in the starting blocks. “RWE could get started next week – if there is a vaccine for the companies,” said CEO Rolf Martin Schmitz of the “Rheinische Post”. The entire workforce could be vaccinated in two weeks. “Then we would offer to vaccinate the families of the employees,” said Schmitz.

At BASF, the time has come: As of today, employees at the Ludwigshafen headquarters are the first company in Germany to receive a vaccination offer. Again SWR reported, a separate vaccination center was set up in the world’s largest chemical plant – with vaccination booths, waiting and rest rooms. This is a pilot project between the federal government and the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. One is proud to be able to help to increase the vaccination speed, to relieve the health system and thus to make a further contribution to the fight against pandemics, said board member Michael Heinz, who is also the site manager in Ludwigshafen, in an interview with the SWR . BioNTech will initially offer the vaccine. At the start, according to BASF, 300 employees were given a vaccination appointment. The vaccinations are in the order specified by the state: initially only employees with previous illnesses such as diabetes. The group expects to be able to vaccinate up to 4,000 employees in the coming weeks. Overall, however, the group employs 39,000 people on the Ludwigshafen site. It is “just” a pilot project. From the point of view of the German economy, the vaccination rate could be significantly increased if, after the general practitioners, the company doctors finally got permission to immunize the employees in the companies against Corona.

Model projects also at Daimler and in Bavaria

There are also similar plans in other large companies. According to Daimler, for example, it has set up its own vaccination centers and vaccination lanes at its German locations. “As soon as the vaccine is available and the vaccination is approved for company doctors, Daimler will start a comprehensive vaccination program,” said a company spokesman. In the main plant in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim, several hundred employees could then be immunized against the corona virus every five minutes. The group plans to use up to five vaccines, depending on the approval. The immunizations are to be carried out by more than 70 company doctors and more than 200 medical assistants across Germany. Other DAX companies, such as the Vonovia residential construction group, also declare that they are ready to be vaccinated. The board of directors said that a test lane had been set up in the company’s own casino, in which employees can be tested twice a week. “As soon as we get vaccines, our company doctors will also be able to vaccinate here.”

Bavaria is also starting a pilot project

Bavaria also wants to speed up the vaccination. In addition, Prime Minister Markus Söder announced a relaxation of the prioritization rules. By the end of April, company doctors in ten companies should be given permission to vaccinate employees against Corona. Several companies have already expressed their willingness to take part in the project. At the forefront is Allianz insurance, which has been pushing for weeks to be able to vaccinate its employees themselves. According to a company spokeswoman, the group has already set up 27 vaccination lanes at 15 central, large production sites nationwide and could in principle begin vaccinations. Company doctors are also available for vaccinations at Knorr-Bremse and the truck manufacturer MAN. However, it is only a pilot project in Bavaria, for which the Bavarian state government has only planned 50,000 cans. Because the first thing is to “test and improve the organization and processes in the companies,” says Munich. Companies are also still not allowed to purchase vaccines themselves.

Vaccinations have long been taking place in companies abroad

The big companies have long referred to their experience with vaccinations, since they have been offering their employees flu vaccinations for years. The large corporations can also fall back on the practice abroad, where they have already started corona vaccinations of their employees in some countries. VW boss Herbert Diess had already said before Easter that the group would vaccinate in Russia and Spain. The Friedrichshafen-based auto supplier ZF has started vaccinating its employees in Serbia. In France, many companies also offer their employees the option of being immunized by the company doctors. Deutsche Bank boss Christian Sewing goes one step further: The money house would not only like to use excess vaccine, but is also “basically ready to allow people to be vaccinated even if they don’t work for us,” he told the newspaper ” The world”. Because there was a lack of nationwide vaccine supply in this country, Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn has so far refused the company doctors a permit. At the end of April, a meeting with the Association of Company and Company Doctors, VDBW, is planned to discuss how to proceed.