Union unhappy with home visits carried out amid suspicions of exploitation of German labour laws
Managers of Tesla's electric car plant in Germany have been deployed to the homes of workers on long-term sick leave amid suspicions that they are "exploiting" German labour laws, according to reports.
André Thierig, the plant's manufacturing director, said they have identified 200 staff members who had not reported to work this year despite receiving pay.
"They submit a new sick note from the doctor at least every six weeks," Thierig told The Guardian.
Backlash to Tesla home visits
But the decision to deploy managers for home visits has drawn criticism from trade union IG Metall.
Dirk Schulze, a regional director at the union, said there was a "culture of fear" that has caused stress and sick leave among employees at the German car factory.
Employees from almost all areas of the plant have also reported an "extremely high workload," according to the regional director.
"When there are staff shortages, the ill workers are put under pressure, and those who remain healthy are overburdened with additional work," Schulze said, as quoted by The Guardian.
"If the factory's overseers really want to reduce the level of sickness, they should break this vicious circle."
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Director defends home visits
Thierig, however, said the home visits were a common practice in the industry and they simply wanted to "appeal to the employees' work ethic," according to The Guardian's report.
The manufacturing director also pointed out a major difference in absence rates between temporary and full-time employees. Among 1,500 temporary workers at Tesla's German plant, the average rate of absence for illness is just two per cent, according to Thierig.
"In our analyses of attendance at work, some phenomena have become obvious: on Fridays and late shifts, about five per cent more employees take sick leave than on other weekdays," Thierig said, as quoted by The Guardian.
He said this analysis disputes the argument of bad working conditions because working conditions at the German plant are the same on all working days across all shifts.
"It suggests that the German social system is being exploited to some extent," Thierig said