Alarming sickness numbers in MV: teachers and police officers severely affected!

Alarming sickness numbers in MV: teachers and police officers severely affected!

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is confronted with alarming numbers of sick people. According to current reports, around 1,000 teachers, 600 police officers and 200 court employees are on sick leave every day. These numbers come from a response from the red-red state government to a small question from AfD state parliament member Enrico Schult, who criticized the situation. Schult calls for more staff to be available in the education and security sectors instead of additional social advisors in the State Chancellery. Nordkurier reports that the sickness rate in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania was 6.4 percent in 2024, while the national German average was 5.4 percent was.

What is particularly noticeable is the high level of sickness in the state administration, which has reached 7.89 percent. The state government sees the number of illnesses as increased, but emphasizes that it is within the usual range of fluctuations. The reasons for the high level of sickness are diverse: both the high workload and the high average age of the employees play a role.

Highest sickness rate at certain authorities

A look at the individual institutions shows that the highest sickness rate was recorded in 2024 in the Southeast Rügen Biosphere Reserve at 20.77 percent. The numbers in the prison system are also worrying: here the sickness rate is 17.2 percent. Alarming values ​​of 13.74 percent also come from the Stralsund Mining Authority, and the Müritz National Park Authority cannot shine either with 10.81 percent. The police have a sickness rate of 9.5 percent and the Wismar tax office has a sickness rate of 9.01 percent, while the public prosecutor's offices have a sickness rate of 8.89 percent.

These illness figures raise questions. Are the conditions really acceptable for the employees? How can the state government respond to this situation? A look at the KKH figures shows that there was a particularly high increase in sickness reports in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in 2024. Spiegel also attributes this development to the enormous pressure in everyday working life.

The red-red coalition in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is under pressure to take the challenges of the ever-increasing sickness reports seriously. Focusing on the well-being of employees in these essential jobs, such as teachers and police officers, could be crucial to the region's responsiveness and security. It remains to be seen how the state government will respond to the criticism and what measures will be taken to sustainably improve the situation.