Corona status: As an employer, can I ask about my current vaccination status?

The 3G rule now applies to the workplace in Germany. This means that employees are obliged to provide their employer with information about their coronavirus status. However, there are still some strict limits in data protection. We explain what the employer is allowed to ask about coronavirus status.

Corona status & the employer: What am I allowed to do as an employer?

According to the BMAS (Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs), proof of vaccination or recovery or proof of testing must now be presented when entering the workplace.

As an employer, you are obliged to check the certificates before entering the workplace. The check can be carried out on site or digitally.

As an employer, you must ensure that the focus of this check is on proof of testing. If employees have shown you proof of vaccination or recovery, you may document this and no further access checks are necessary.

However, as an employer, you may ask for the coronavirus status again and these employees must present the proof again on request.

However, there is no obligation for employees to disclose their vaccination or recovery status to you as an employer. Instead, your employees can simply continue to submit up-to-date test certificates.

Disclose corona status to the employer: It is mandatory in these institutions

There are some specific facilities and companies where you may require employees to have a vaccination or recovery status.

These are facilities where particularly vulnerable groups of people are present. These include the following:

• Daycare centers, after-school care, schools
• Full and partial inpatient facilities & care facilities
• Outpatient care services
• Homes
• Vacation camp
• Correctional facilities

What data are you allowed to check as an employer?

The following data is requested when checking the vaccination, recovered or tested status:

• First name
• Family name
• Proof of status
• Validity of the proof

Can I transfer employees if they are not vaccinated?

In general, information about the vaccination status of employees helps you to organize your work so that staff can be deployed appropriately. In addition, appropriate hygiene measures must be taken.

Whether a change is really justified in specific cases depends on general principles of labor law. The nature and extent of the employee’s personal contacts in the current working environment must also be taken into account. In addition, care must be taken to ensure that there is sufficient protection.

Can I dismiss employees if they refuse to tell me about their coronavirus status?

According to the new regulations for institutions and companies with particularly vulnerable groups of people, there is no provision under dismissal law. The general principles of employment law apply.

Can my employees attend vaccination appointments during working hours? Do I have to give them time off for this?

It is therefore up to the employer to decide whether to release employees for a vaccination appointment during working hours while continuing to pay their salary. In order to reduce the risk of infection in the company, companies are of course required to contribute to this.

As there is currently no legal obligation to vaccinate, the employer cannot sanction the lack of vaccination.

As an employer, am I allowed to ask my employees about a positive coronavirus test?

Yes, you are allowed to do so. If employees have been infected, the usual rules for illness apply and employees must submit a certificate of incapacity for work.

As an employer, you have a duty of care and protection towards all your employees. You can only take special protective measures if you know that there are infected colleagues.

For this reason, employees are obliged to inform their employer if they are infected with the coronavirus.

May I ask my employees if they have had contact with infected persons?

Such a question is perfectly permissible if you have an infection or a suspected case in a person.

Can I ask my employees to send me a copy or an electronic copy of their vaccination, recovery or test certificate?

As an employer, you may not request or create and store copies of vaccination, recovery or test certificates. It is therefore not permitted to request that evidence be sent electronically. It is clearly sufficient for you to take note of the status and document it with a date.