Baden-Württemberg – The new Infection Protection Act has now also passed the Federal Council. Among other things, it provides for a home office requirement and a test requirement at the workplace.
On Friday morning (November 19) the time has come: In the Bundesrat, the representations of the federal states approve the amendment to the Infection Protection Act that was passed yesterday in the Bundestag *. And, despite all the quarrels, surprisingly unanimously: In the end, the federal states in Berlin voted unanimously for the innovations put forward by the parties that are likely to be ruling in the future, the SPD, FDP and the Greens. There were definitely voices who hadn’t anticipated this in advance.
| state | Baden-Wuerttemberg |
| State capital | Stuttgart |
| population | 11,103,043 (as of December 31, 2020) |
| area | 35,751.46 km² |
| Prime Minister | Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) |
An amendment to the law had become necessary because the previously applicable regulations on the “epidemic situation” expire on November 25th. With today’s resolution, the council now approves various changes that are likely to have a massive impact on some people in their everyday lives. For example, the use of local public transport should only be possible under 3G rules. For Baden-Württemberg, Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) announced additional tough restrictions, especially for unvaccinated citizens *, on Thursday evening. By the way, the new law will come into force nationwide from next week and apply until March 19.
Infection Protection Act: Duty to work from home
Another innovation contained in the law that has just been passed reintroduces what was already in effect at the beginning of the year: employers are now again obliged to let their employees work from home – if possible. The obligation to work from home exists “if there are no compelling operational reasons to the contrary”, according to the legal text. The law is silent about what exactly such operational reasons are;
Conversely, employees are not allowed to refuse this offer. In plain English this means:
- Employees with “office work or comparable activities” must be able to work in the home office. Unless there are operational reasons against it, such as processing mail. And:
- Employees must accept the home office offer. There are exceptions if it is not possible to work at home, for example because it is too narrow, too loud or the necessary equipment is missing.
Coronavirus: 3G in the workplace
The new features also include the 3G rule in the workplace. Anyone who comes into contact with people at work must be vaccinated, recovered, or be tested daily. Employees must then always present proof, the employer is obliged to check. Having to obtain this proof on a regular basis is exhausting, but at least free of charge. Employees who refuse have to work in the home office or be deployed elsewhere. A leave of absence without continued payment of wages or termination in the final analysis are also conceivable. (mko) * HEIDELBERG24 is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
Headline list image: © Finn Winkler / dpa
