Your guide to medical appointments during working hours

Doctor’s appointment during working hours: guide

Information on statutory and collectively agreed regulations on time off work

Working people often find it difficult to get a suitable doctor’s appointment outside of working hours. Long waiting times for doctor’s appointments leave employees with no choice but to reschedule their visit to the doctor during working hours. Working hours may overlap with the opening hours of doctors’ surgeries. Many working people are therefore forced to go to the doctor during working hours.

Abstract

• In principle, medical appointments are a private matter and should be scheduled in your free time.
• Section 616 of the German Civil Code (BGB) and collective agreements contain regulations for time off work.
• The entitlement to time off work for medical appointments depends on the regular working hours.
• There are different regulations for visits to the doctor in the case of acute illnesses and during pregnancy.

When is a doctor’s appointment permitted during working hours?

An employee may visit a doctor during working hours if an acute illness occurs. If sudden pain, gastrointestinal problems or fever occur at the workplace, the employer must release the employee immediately. After an accident at work, a visit to the doctor during working hours is also permitted.

Section 616 of the German Civil Code contains a generally applicable regulation for time off. According to this, a doctor’s appointment during working hours is possible if:

• the duration of the absence from work is proportionate and not significant
• the reason for the prevention lies in the person of the employee
• the employee is not at fault

If none of these reasons for taking time off work apply, an online consultation at the TeleClinic is a good and time-saving alternative. Patients choose a desired appointment – for example during their break – and then speak to a doctor via video call. If necessary, the doctor issues a prescription and a sick note.

The question of proportionality

This provision regularly raises questions, as it offers a great deal of scope for interpretation. Clarification in court is often the result. There is disagreement on the questions of when the duration is significant or when the employee is at fault. Employees may be at fault if they attend a non-urgent doctor’s appointment during working hours.

To eliminate this legal uncertainty, the following concretizations are provided:

• Collective agreements
• Company agreements
• employment contracts

Is there an entitlement to payment during the doctor’s visit?

Section 616 of the German Civil Code stipulates that the entitlement to remuneration continues to exist during temporary absence from work. According to this, there is a right to continued payment of wages for the time of the doctor’s visit if this cannot take place outside of regular working hours. Most industries and companies also have detailed provisions on this.

Do the same rules apply to all employees?

As a statutory provision, Section 616 of the German Civil Code takes precedence over all other provisions. Employment contracts, internal company agreements and collective agreements may not restrict the rights stipulated by law. However, it is permissible to extend rights at any time. Therefore, the same provisions do not apply to all employees in Germany.

Employment contracts and company agreements can generally permit visits to the doctor during working hours without deduction of wages. They can also allow employees to attend medical appointments at will, but limit continued payment of wages to cases covered by Section 616 of the German Civil Code (BGB). Similar provisions are also possible in collective agreements.

Regulation by the collective agreement

In most sectors, collective agreements regulate time off work. A visit to the doctor during working hours in accordance with the TVöD (collective agreement for the public sector) is possible if it has to take place during working hours. Section 29 of the TVöD covers all medical and medically prescribed treatments. This includes, for example

• Physiotherapy
• Irradiations
• Medicinal baths and massages
• Occupational therapy
• Speech therapy
• Nutritional therapy

In these cases, time off work goes hand in hand with continued payment of wages.

Treatments must take place during working hours if:

• Sudden symptoms occur
• doctor and treatment appointments are not available outside working hours
• Treatments and examinations are required at certain times

Are part-time employees allowed to visit the doctor during working hours?

The same regulations apply to part-time employees as to full-time employees. However, due to their shorter working hours, it is easier for them to arrange medical appointments in their free time.

What are the rules for flexitime and flexible working hours?

Flexible working hours allow employees to determine their own working hours to a large extent. They only have to ensure that they adhere to the agreed weekly, monthly or annual working hours. This allows them to benefit from much more flexible leisure time arrangements. By starting work later in the morning, for example, they can take blood samples in their free time.

It is possible to interrupt working hours to attend doctor’s appointments and medical treatment. Employees with flexitime must make up the working time missed due to the doctor’s appointment at a later date.

What applies during pregnancy?

There are exceptions to the regulations on doctor’s appointments during working hours during pregnancy. Section 7 of the Maternity Protection Act regulates the entitlement to time off work for pregnant employees. They must be released from work for preventive medical check-ups with continued payment of wages.

Questions and answers

How often can I attend a doctor’s appointment during working hours?

Medical appointments during working hours should be limited. If regular visits to the doctor are necessary due to a chronic or long-term illness, they must be postponed to free time.

Is the travel time to the doctor working time?

If a doctor’s appointment is permitted during working hours, this also includes the travel time to the doctor. The right to free choice of doctor must not be restricted for employees. This therefore also applies to longer travel times. However, proportionality must be maintained.

Do I have to provide my employer with a doctor’s certificate?

Employers can request a medical certificate for the duration of a doctor’s appointment during working hours. You are also entitled to a statement from the doctor stating that an appointment in your free time is not possible.

Sources

• https://cdn.aerzteblatt.de/pdf/105/37/s150.pdf
• https://www.aerzteblatt.de/archiv/61500/Arbeitsrecht-Wann-der-Chef-Sonderurlaub-gewaehren-muss
• https://www.dbb.de/fileadmin/pdfs/tacheles/tacheles_20_0102.pdf
• https://www.haufe.de/oeffentlicher-dienst/tvoed-office-professional/arztbesuch_idesk_PI13994_HI710768.html
• https://www.praktischarzt.de/ratgeber/arztbesuch-waehrend-arbeitszeit/
• https://www.igmetall.de/service/ratgeber/darf-ich-waehrend-der-arbeitszeit-zum-arzt
• https://verdi-bub.de/wissen/praxistipps/arztbesuch-waehrend-der-arbeitszeit
• https://dejure.org/gesetze/BGB/616.html