At least for the time being there are no plans to make vaccination compulsory in Germany – even though the legislator could in principle enact such a duty by means of the Infection Protection Act (Infektionsschutzgesetz) and has already made use of this possibility in other cas-es (e.g. measles).

Also, employers cannot oblige employees to be vaccinated by means of their right to issue instructions. An instruction issued nevertheless would be ineffective under consideration of the constitutional protection of physical integrity and the general personal right.

However, can the employer exercise its house right in such a way that it ties the admission to the company premises, e.g. to a vaccination certificate? This should only be possible if there are no less severe means to contain the risk of infection, such as remote work or hygiene measures. The personal rights of employees must be taken into consideration in a sufficient manner in any case.

In addition, such a regulation would in principle affect the organizational conduct and the health protection, which is why the works council would have to participate in the decision before issuing it.

Employers cannot introduce an obligation to vaccinate. Access restrictions will only be possible in exceptional cases and in compliance with the co-determination of the works council.