The escalating number of school absences due to illness among children is surging noticeably.
It's been discovered that kindergarten workers took over 30 sick days annually, which is roughly a 30% increase compared to the average sick leave days across all professions between 2021 and 2023. Mental health issues were notably prevalent among these workers. Experts raise concerns about the difficulty in providing adequate care and urge federal and state collaboration for a solution.
As a result of the high sickness rates, numerous kindergartens in Germany are trapped in a "negative cycle," cautioned Anette Stein, an expert from Bertelsmann Foundation. This cycle worsens as more specialists leave, causing increased workload for the remaining employees. High-quality early childhood education and care become challenging in many areas. A federal-state law is required to sanction temporary replacement by qualified personnel while employees are absent.
The foundation analyzed data from health insurance companies, revealing that psychological illnesses have drastically increased in the kindergarten sector since 2021 and surpass the average of all professions by a significant margin. Last year, psychological reasons accounted for the second most common cause of sick leave among kindergarten employees, surpassed only by respiratory infections.
Based on the analysis, the sickness rate – the proportion of sick leave days to all scheduled workdays – was also striking in the kindergarten sector. In 2023, the sickness rate was approximately 8%, considerably higher compared to the industry-wide average of around 6%.
Over 97,000 Full-Time Employees Needed for Replacements
The foundation, in collaboration with the Expert Forum, a coalition of kindergarten employees and experts, encouraged a reliable replacement system. Federal and state governments must collaborate to establish common standards for replacement by qualified personnel in case of absence. To replace the current number of absences, around 97,000 full-time employees would be required nationwide.
However, in Eastern Germany, potential relief may come from demoting pedagogical specialists to replace absent employees, since there is a decrease in children's enrollment in kindergartens, the foundation and the Expert Forum suggested. In these cases, the local states should create the necessary legislation to preserve employment for these specialists.
On the other hand, in areas with personnel deficits, the foundation and the Expert Forum advised against inflating the staffing ratio by counting inadequately qualified employees. This issue is of particular concern in western federal states, where its impact is steadily increasing.
Given the high rates of sick leave among kindergarten workers and the resulting challenges in providing quality childcare facilities, there's a pressing need for a reliable replacement system. Federal and state governments should collaborate to establish standardized procedures for temporarily replacing absent employees with qualified personnel.
The analysis revealed that over 97,000 full-time employees would be required nationwide to cover the current number of sick leave days in kindergartens. This underscores the urgency of addressing this issue and enhancing childcare facilities' overall capacity.
