Days off work | Gen Z more often on sick leave, but for shorter periods

Conflicts between generations are nothing new, and there have always been clichés about them. The health insurance company DAK-Gesundheit took a closer look. The focus of a new report was the world of work and how the so-called Generation Z (Gen Z) is faring in it. Generation Z encompasses those born between 1995 and 2010. With 8.3 million people, they represent one-fifth of the 43 million employed people in Germany.

This group has been familiar with and using digital media since childhood . They have experienced the pandemic, and the measures taken have had a particularly negative impact on them. According to DAK CEO Andreas Storm, helplessness during the pandemic is one of Gen Z's fundamental life experiences.

However, the division in society was not overcome after this, but further disruptive events followed, including the war in Ukraine. According to study author Susanne Hildebrandt, head of the department at the IGES Institute, this generation also lives under conditions of a growing shortage of skilled workers and thus high demand from companies for their labor.

The youngest in this group are unlikely to have already entered the workforce at 15, but the report also includes apprentices and young people enrolled in dual study programs. Beyond these, a larger group of Gen Z remains uncounted: all other students and those receiving social security or unemployment benefits, who could therefore be looking for work. Unemployment in this age group is 8.2 percent, higher than average. Experts attribute this in part to worthless, i.e., low-demand qualifications.

As far as companies in Germany are concerned, generational conflicts are certainly evident. According to the DAK report, 28 percent of Gen Z employees report such tensions between different age groups. One in four of them feels strongly or even very strongly burdened by them. Almost a fifth, in turn, are not bothered by such conflicts at all. On average, 23 percent of all employees experience them, and 18 percent of this group perceives them as a burden.

Compared to other sectors, conflicts are most frequently observed (by 30 percent of employees each) in the healthcare and social services sector, as well as in education and teaching. According to the Böckler Foundation, these sectors are clearly dominated by women, with 72 to 80 percent of employees. However, according to the Iges expert, gender aspects were "not examined in depth" in the DAK study, as nd stated in response to an inquiry.

With regard to the development of the skilled labor shortage, the finding regarding conflict perceptions is a further warning signal that working conditions, especially for women (and especially mothers), must be improved. The fact that generational conflicts are least observed in data processing and information services companies is consistent with this. According to the industry association Bitcom, the proportion of men in IT alone is around 80 percent.

The DAK report reveals differences in sick leave rates. Contrary to stereotypes about the supposed laziness of those under 30, their sick leave rate in 2024 was 4.7 percent compared to 5.4 percent of all DAK-insured employees. The difference is significantly greater in the number of sick leave rates: 42 percent more sick leave cases were recorded for 2024 compared to all employees. On average, however, those under 30 are on sick leave for significantly shorter periods.

All generations have learned from the pandemic when it comes to dealing with infections: According to the report, 49 percent of all employees have become more cautious, with those under 30 slightly more so at 54 percent. The latter are more likely to call in sick as a preventative measure to prevent a cough or cold from worsening. The number of "respiratory sick days" is significantly higher among them than among all employees.

This may be partly explained by the fact that younger people are less likely to be able to work from home. The under-30s group is split: 15- to 24-year-olds have the smallest share of mobile workers, while 25- to 34-year-olds have the highest.