People in Germany have been living with restrictions in their private lives for more than a year.
In contrast, companies are handled with kid gloves.
This must now be over, thinks Left Co-Chair Janine Wissler.
Munich - Much has been tried in the corona pandemic to get the crisis under control.
From curfews and contact restrictions to the so-called 15-kilometer leash or closings of certain facilities such as restaurants or retail stores.
Other possible measures have so far been completely omitted - for no real reason.
For example, the federal government and the 16 state leaders have still not been able to bring about a home office requirement for employees at their conference of prime ministers.
Instead, the companies were politely encouraged to familiarize their employees with the possibility of working from home.
But if the employee declines with thanks, Angela Merkel and Co. don't want to push anyone.
Left boss wants home office compulsory: "Corona infections do not end at the company gate"
Understand that who wants.
Janine Wissler cannot understand this relaxed attitude.
In an interview with
Deutschlandfunk, the
new co-chair of the left complains
: "At the moment, the operating restrictions end at the company gate, but the corona infections do not end at the company gate."
In her opinion, "also in the world of work" must now be applied if the development of the number of infections is to be halted in a promising way.
In this context, Wissler speaks of a "lockdown based on solidarity, which just means that it is not just the people in their private lives and the cultural sector that bear the consequences".
Left boss wants home office compulsory: "buses and trains are full every day"
The 39-year-old emphasizes: “We have many people in this country who go to work as normal, who drive to open-plan offices every day, in call centers, in production halls.
And that's where infections take place.
The buses and trains are full. ”Her suggestion would be“ really an obligation to work from home wherever this is possible, really compliance with occupational safety and hygiene measures ”.
And it would not end there for a long time for Wissler.
In a pinch, a few days of rest would have to be used: “I think that if the numbers keep going up, then you have to talk about the fact that production that is not urgently needed has to be shut down for a few days to simply break the infection chains .
Because it is also economically short-term, if you can't get the numbers down and just really get caught in such a loop. "
Video: For Merkel "vaccination is the way out of the crisis"
Left boss wants home office compulsory: "Employers must offer employees tests free of charge"
In order to avoid an endless lockdown, she also envisions "that employers must offer their employees who are not in the home office tests, free of charge."
Basically, it is about building a "sensible test strategy".
This must look like "that we test really consistently wherever encounters take place, and that is independent of symptoms, independent of suspicions".
That should also make sense to the Merkel group.
But first of all, enough tests have to be available.
In view of the vaccine debacle in the stingy EU countries, party leader Wissler suggests: “If the companies don't produce enough vaccine, then we have to release the patents, then the licenses have to be released so that production can be increased.” The Hessian admits bear in mind that ultimately Germany would also benefit from an "internationally fair distribution of vaccines": "Because we can only fight this pandemic worldwide."
(mg)
