The instructions for handling the coronavirus in the business area of the HMWK must be observed. Furthermore, the primary objective is to maintain the proper functioning of the state government and its departments and agencies. The instructions therefore focus on the state’s duty to protect the health of its employees.

In light of the current pandemic situation, state employees are expected to observe the regulations as defined by section 1, Corona Protection Ordinance, and comply with the guidelines provided by the Robert Koch Institute.

Link in German:

• Instructions for Handling the Corona Virus in the Business Area of the Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts - effective from April 02, 2022 (in German)

3G Regulations in the workplace (§ 28b Infection Protection Act, IfSG)

Pursuant to the amendment of the German Infection Protection Act (Infektionsschutzgesetz, IfSG), new regulations for infection control in the workplace have been introduced. The employer is responsible for monitoring compliance. Employers and employees have to carry proof of their vaccination or recovery status or a current negative COVID test result when entering the workplace.

For more detailed information please see the current version of  § 28b IfSG. The regulations apply until March 19, 2022.

If employees who are more likely to suffer from a severe COVID-19 infection cannot work from home, employers must explore all options in relation to hygiene and distance regulations to enable them to work in the office. Employees concerned must provide a medical certificate which proves that they belong to a risk group. The costs to obtain such a certificate must be borne by the employees themselves.

In particular, employers must consider if employees affected can be given an individual office, work during off-peak hours or be reassigned to alternative duties.

The medical certificate has to be presented to the superior for information purposes. The original must be sent to HR & HR Development. Superiors are not authorized to make a copy of the certificate. After the end of the pandemic, HR will destroy all doctor's certificates immediately and in compliance with data protection laws.

If neither working from home nor working at your workplace is possible, plus hours in the flexitime account or other overtime hours need to be used.

If all of the above possibilities are exhausted or are not possible, paid leave of absence from work can be considered in exceptional cases on the basis of an occupational medical examination within the framework of dutiful discretion, and after weighting up the duty to maintain proper operational functioning and the duty to have regard for the welfare of officials. In these cases, please contact HR & HR Development.

If the nursery, child care facility or school is closed due to infection prevention measures, employees with children under 12 years of age can be allowed to work at home for home care reasons. The home office agreements already made continue to apply.

In exceptional cases, leave of absence from work or service with continued payment of remuneration may be granted for periods outside school holidays or closing times if

• the shared childcare facility or school is partially or completely closed or in restricted regular operation
• the children have not yet reached the age of 12 or are in need of help due to a physical, mental or psychological impairment 
• work at home, if necessary with reduced working hours, is not possible
• plus hours on the flexitime account as well as overtime hours have already been used 
• alternative childcare options (e.g. emergency childcare, other parent, family care group) are not available on an hourly basis.

The same applies to the care of a close relative in need of care if the day care facility closes due to infection prevention measures or admission is not possible.

If all of the above possibilities are exhausted or are not possible after consultation with superiors, paid leave of absence from work may be considered. In that case, please contact HR & HR Development.

For detailed information, for examples on the conditions to claim child sickness benefit (Kinderkrankengeld), please go to the website of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth: https://www.bmfsfj.de/bmfsfj/aktuelles/alle-meldungen/kinderkrankengeld-wird-ausgeweitet/164738 (information provided in German)

An English-language explanation of the child sickness benefit (Kinderkrankengeld) can be found on the following website:

https://www.iamexpat.de/expat-info/german-expat-news/kinderkrankengeld-how-parents-germany-can-take-paid-time-care-kids

HGU employees are supposed to work from home until further notice, provided that their task and duties and their technical equipment qualify for mobile work and their presence in the workplace is not required (HomeOfficeCorona). If employees must be present in the workplace due to the nature of their tasks and duties or in order to ensure proper service operations, measures shall be taken to reduce the number of contacts among employees to a minimum.

When working from home, please bear in mind that you are obliged to protect confidential data and information so that third parties do not have access.

Employees can work from home if the following criteria are met:

• The tasks must be suitable for being carried out at home.
• Service operations can be maintained.
• Data protection and data security is guaranteed.
• Any overload is avoided.
• Participation is voluntary.
• No overtime hours can be accumulated.

Respective superiors are responsible for proper service operations.

The instructions for handling the coronavirus in the area of responsibility of the Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts (Dienstanweisung zum Umgang mit dem Corona-Virus im Geschäftsbereich des HMWK), dated November 30, 2021, remain unaffected.

Self-test kits are provided to employees in accordance with the SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Regulations. Please contact Occupational Safety and Healthcare Management for further information.

Hygiene regulations for working on campus

Surgical masks or face masks of the protection classes FFP2, KN95, N95 or similar without integrated exhalation valve must be worn in all HGU buildings. This does not include workspaces that are not accessible to the public, provided that a distance of 1.5 m from others can be safely maintained.

• On days when employees work from home all day, they contact HR to report their actual working hours. Employees cannot claim overtime when working from home. Exceptions can only be made in individual cases.
• On days when employees work partly at Hochschule Geisenheim University and partly at home, they book their arrival and departure time at the time recording device, and report their working hours for mobile work to Human Resources. In general, employees cannot claim overtime when working from home. Exceptions can only be made in individual cases.
• On days when employees work at Hochschule Geisenheim University all day, they book their arrival and departure times at the time recording device. On these days, flextime plus hours and minus hours are recorded as usual and can be used in accordance with the flextime employment agreement.
• Travel time between the office and the mobile workplace does not count as working time.

In general, employees cannot claim overtime when they are working from home. Exceptions can only be made in individual cases if the current pandemic-related workload requires overtime.

Official meetings and committee meetings may be held indoors with a maximum of 25 participants and in compliance with enhanced hygiene standards. However, meetings should be reduced to a minimum. Please observe the regulations provided by the SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Ordinance, which stipulates that if several people are in the same room at the same time, each person must have a minimum of 10 square meters, if this is compatible with the assigned tasks. If necessary, the Department of Occupational Safety and Healthcare Management provides surgical face masks or FFP2 masks.

How can I protect myself and others during meetings?

• The Federal Center for Health Education has summarized the most important hygiene information in this diagram (in German)
• Consider if the meeting can be postponed or replaced by a conference call
• Reduce the number of participants to the required employees/participants
• Limit topics and schedule to what is absolutely essential
• Wear a medical mask until you have taken your seat
• If possible, arrange the seats in the room to allow a safety distance (1 - 2 m is recommended)
• Do not shake hands
• Everyone should wash their hands thoroughly before the meeting begins. The room should be aired thoroughly before the meeting starts.
• Air the room regularly during the meeting
• Participants with cold symptoms should not take part in the meeting
• Participants or people returning from high-risk areas should not take part or they may participate via conference call
• Observe coughing and sneezing hygiene. Do not cough or sneeze into your hand but in the crook of your arm or, preferably, leave the meeting room for a short period of time.
• Always take your used tissues with you and dispose of them in a closed bin.
• Keep your distance in personal discussions. A 15-minute lively conversation between two people in a room without any safety distance is considered enough for a transmission of the corona virus.
• For possible inquiries, make a list of all participants with names and contact details (phone number, e-mail) and store the list for a period of one month.

In case of illness, all employees have to report sick on the first day of illness. From the 4th calender day onwards, a sick note is required.

• As a general rule, any approved recovery holiday cannot be reclaimed because of the Corona pandemic or holiday trips being cancelled as a result.
• As usual, already approved recovery holiday can only be reclaimed in justified individual cases with the consent of your superior. This can be the case if, for urgent operational reasons, the employee is considered indispensable for maintaining services and operations despite of a planned holiday.
• Please adhere to the current instructions and the obligation to inform your employer when returning from abroad

Further training should take place digitally (webinars) if possible. In case digital alternatives are not possible, urgently required trainings may take place face-to-face in compliance with applicable hygiene and distance regulations.

Participating in external trainings is possible if hygiene and safety standards are adhered to. Regulations for business trips must be followed.

• Superiors and the business travellers have to carefully evaluate if the business trip is absolutely necessary. 
• Alternatives such as video conferencing or conference calls are to be prioritized.
• If a business trip is indispensable, employees should use an official or private car, if possible, and they may not carry any passengers. Public transport should be avoided where possible.
• In terms of travel expenses it can be assumed that valid reasons exist for travelling in your own car pursuant to Section 6 (1) of the Travel Expenses Act of the State of Hesse, and a mileage allowance amounting to EUR 0.35 can be granted.

Selection interviews may take place in the usual face-to-face setting again if hygiene standards, as outlined in the Instructions for Handling the Corona Virus, are adhered to. This also applies to interviews as part of appointment procedures.

Interviews may also take place in a digital form. For important information on digital interviews, please get in touch with the responsible departments beforehand.