WirtschaftsWoche: Mr. Dulger, how high is the vaccination rate in your company?
Rainer Dulger: I wish I knew. Because then I could protect my employees even better.
Do we still want entrepreneurs here?
Employer President Rainer Dulger talks about the imminent return to normality, a lack of appreciation for small and medium-sized businesses, and his hopes for a new head of government named Superman:
Berlin, 17 September 2021.
So should there be a nationwide employee disclosure requirement?
It would be a great help if the federal government would allow an exemption, at least temporarily. Given the pandemic situation and the approaching cold season, when colds are rampant, employers should be allowed to ask about vaccination status. After all, many employees would like that assurance themselves.
As an employer, you could also offer a vaccination bonus: Everyone who shows their vaccination certificate or has themselves vaccinated by the company doctor receives 250 euros.
I think it would be better if this were regulated uniformly and if the federal government were to set new incentives here to accelerate the pace of vaccination. This can also be arranged regionally differently: In Munich, for example, with tickets for FC Bayern, half the city would probably get pricked. And yes: I would also welcome a cash bonus - anything that helps is the right thing to do in order to return to normality. But once again, that's the job of the legislature.
Why is that? After all, a high vaccination rate benefits not least the economy.
We employers have delivered: Millions of employees have been vaccinated by company doctors in recent weeks. In total, more than five million vaccination doses have been given to company doctors. This has helped to spread the vaccination campaign and reach even more people. It has also given us a further boost and shown what the social partners can achieve when we work together. However, it is clear that the state must not unilaterally shift responsibility onto companies.
Do you oppose compulsory vaccination?
There are areas where I am in favour of compulsory vaccination: in healthcare, in childcare, in nursing. It makes perfect sense there. For individual citizens, the federal government has decided that there is no obligation, so the question does not arise.
Should the unvaccinated be made more uncomfortable?
I am not a fan of the ban culture. It works the other way around: those who are vaccinated and fully protected must immediately be given back a normal life and their civil rights: being able to go to restaurants, the theatre and the cinema. Everyone else must in future test themselves at their own expense - or can then not take part.
