Again and again, I notice a few more people calling in sick on Mondays than on any other day of the week. Basically, that is not a problem with me. The reason is probably that the activities some people indulge in on weekends are a little too much for them.
But I think this is a good opportunity for all of us to remember that the continuation of payment for manual labourers has been established by law in the Federal Republic of Germany as late as 1969. That was when manual labourers and clerical workers were finally made equal.
Well, it was not that long ago, was it? I graduated from high school in 1969. As (almost) usual, you can find a long article on this topic in Wikipedia.
Here, too, we are in a process of change. More and more of my friends and acquaintances are freelancers. “Freelancer” is the modern term for day labourer. Freelancers have no continuation of payment in case of illness. Nor do they have dismissal protection or pay mandatory retirement insurance.
Still, all freelancers I know seem to be quite happy with their lot. And the number of freelancers seems to grow continually.
RMD
(Translated by EG)