For employees
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For employees

What do I have to consider in the home office? When can I start working on site again? Here employees receive important information about the current situation.

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Mandatory masking & Contact tracing

How is contact tracing at TH Wildau regulated?Open areaClose area

TH Wildau introduced a system developed in-house for contact tracing in case of a SARS-Cov2 infection: the "Web-App für contact tracing". 

All premises of TH Wildau will be successively equipped with QR codes.

The QR codes must be scanned with a mobile device before entering the premises. Those who do not have a mobile device or do not wish to use one can also maintain the data manually via the icampus.th-wildau.de/kontaktnachverfolgung (there is currently no English version of the web app available).website on any other device with Internet access before or after entering the premises.

Further information on the web app is available at: https://en.th-wildau.de/contact-tracing

Mandatory maskingOpen areaClose area

As a general rule: In all other premises of the TH (corrodirs, foyers etc.), the wearing of a medical face mask (OP mask or FFP2 mask) is mandatory!

The principle applies that staff (members) should not be in the position of having to violate the distance rules in their offices or laboratories. In this sense, it is strongly recommended to use the possibilities of the home office to reduce the occupancy of the premises accordingly. If the distance rules cannot be complied with due to an urgent need for higher occupancy of the premises or the nature of the activities, compensation through additional protective measures must be examined in individual cases (e.g. application for Plexiglas panes).

Offices and laboratories

In offices and laboratories used by a clearly defined group of people, the wearing of nasal masks can be dispensed with, provided that the minimum distance between staff (members) of 1.5 m is maintained and regular ventilation is ensured.

Classroom (teaching) events

The mask requirement also applies to classroom events (courses and examinations).

For tested, fully vaccinated and recovered: Do they also have to wear a mask?Open areaClose area

Yes, the current guidelines on the obligation to wear a mask and the distance requirement are still valid for these groups of people.

Home-Office

What applies to working in a home office?Open areaClose area

On 1 September 2021, the service agreement on alternating teleworking and mobile working (DV ATMA: Dienstvereinbarung zur alternierenden Telearbeit und zum mobilen Arbeiten) concluded between the university and the General Staff Council is supposed to come into force at TH Wildau.

However, due to the continuing special situation, for the time being the home office regulations made in the context of the Corona pandemic will also be extended until 31.10.2021. This means in detail:

  • The period of validity for existing home office agreements is extended until 31.10.2021. Existing agreements do not require a separate written form.
  • New home office agreements can be concluded for the period until 31.10.2021. Please continue to use the template for home office agreements available on the website at www.en.th-wildau.de/corona for this purpose.
  • If such a home office agreement exists or is concluded, it is not necessary to conclude an agreement on alternating teleworking in accordance with the DV ATMA for the period until 31.10.21. 

Please use the resulting transitional phase between the Corona-related home office regulations and the new regulations according to the DV ATMA at all levels to familiarise yourself with the details of our new service agreement. The regulations made there will be decisive for working outside the workplace at the university in the future. In addition, the General Staff Council will inform all employees in a targeted and timely manner about the DV ATMA and the associated procedures. 

Status: 06.08.2021

Other labour law requirements

Labour law requirementsOpen areaClose area

On 27 January 2021, the new SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Ordinance (Corona-ArbSchV) of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs came into force with the aim of minimising the risk of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus at work and protecting the safety and health of staff.

The regulation introduced a new obligation for employers to offer home office. Workers should accept the offer if they can.

In addition, stricter occupational health and safety regulations apply. Therefore, the following occupational health and safety rules are mandatory to implement for work at TH Wildau:

  • Company-related meetings of several people are to be reduced to the minimum necessary for the company and, if possible, replaced by the use of information technology. This means, for example, that digital communication tools or the telephone should be used wherever possible.
  • For meetings that must necessarily take place on site, all appropriate protective measures must be taken, in particular ventilation measures and suitable partitions between the persons present. Please also note that when entering premises of the TH Wildau, you log in via the web app for contact tracking. Information on this can be found here, for example: https://en.th-wildau.de/contact-tracing
  • The simultaneous use of workrooms by several persons is to be reduced to the operationally necessary minimum. If occupancy by more than one person is necessary, the following requirements must be strictly adhered to:
    • All persons in the room must wear medical face masks, e.g. surgical masks or FFP2 masks, if the minimum distance of 1.5 metres cannot be maintained or if a hazard due to increased aerosol emission is to be expected during the activities to be carried out (e.g. if it is necessary to speak particularly loudly).
    • The room size must ensure 10 square metres minimum area per person present. If this cannot be met, the number of persons must be reduced. Insofar as the activities to be performed cannot be carried out at a physical distance, other suitable protective measures must ensure the equivalent protection of the employees, in particular by means of ventilation measures and suitable separations between the persons present.
    • Fixed working groups, as small as possible, must be formed for on-site work that is necessary for operations, if this has not already been done. Contacts between the individual working groups and changes to this division must be kept to the minimum necessary for the operation. Personal meetings should be replaced by meetings using information technology, as described above.

The possibility of working in a home office, as long as there are no compelling operational reasons against it, was already made possible by the university at an early stage and extensively. Due to the new SARS-CoV-2 occupational health and safety regulation, we request all supervisors to once again check whether the work of the staff (members) on site at the premises of the TH Wildau is reduced to the minimum necessary for operations or whether other activities are suitable to be carried out by the employees in the home office.

Staff (members) are encouraged to accept and make use of the opportunities offered to work from home. Please support your superiors and agree with them which activities you do not necessarily have to work on at the university.

For on-site work that is necessary for operations, all supervisors are requested to check for their work units whether these regulations, which are obligatory under the SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Ordinance, are being observed. Employees are requested to comply with the regulations when carrying out their activities.

In the event of any deficiencies, efforts should be made to rectify them quickly. In the event of difficulties in implementing the obligatory health and safety regulations, please contact the Crisis Team (krisenstab@th-wildau.de).

Enclosed, supervisors will find "Supporting guidance for compliance with the SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Regulation" for reviewing the occupational health and safety status in the work units.

The SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Regulation is initially valid for a limited period until 15 March 2021. The full text can be found here:

In addition to the SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, the SARS-CoV-2 Occupational Health and Safety Rule, which came into force in August 2020, continues to apply. This can be found here:

Business trips & stays abroad

What are the regulations for planned business trips?Open areaClose area

Notification for travel to risk areas to the Chancellor

  • The previous regulation is no longer applicable. Such trips no longer have to be registered with the Chancellor.

Business trips

  • Non-urgent business trips shall continue to be refrained from.
  • Urgently necessary business trips are generally permitted with the following restrictions:
    • For travel to risk areas, case-by-case approval must be obtained from the university management. The case-by-case assessment is carried out by the President or the Chancellor. In this examination, the vaccination status, among other things, is taken into account if the applicant voluntarily makes a corresponding statement in the justification for the business trip.
    • Missions to virus variant areas and high incidence areas are not eligible for approval.
  • The costs of necessary PCR tests for business trips can be charged as travel expenses.

Does the TH Wildau cover PCR tests required for business trips?Open areaClose area

Yes, the costs of necessary PCR tests for business trips can be charged as travel expenses.

Where are international risk areas currently located?Open areaClose area

The Robert Koch Institute currently identifies certain countries as risk areasvirus variant areas and high incidence areas.

For persons entering the Federal Republic of Germany, the nationwide uniform Coronavirus Entry Ordinance has been in force since 13 May 2021. Please note the corresponding regulations.

Source: https://www.rki.de/DE/Content/InfAZ/N/Neuartiges_Coronavirus/Risikogebiete_neu.html

What rules apply to employees returning from a risk area?Open areaClose area

The following instructions and regulations apply to returnees from risk areas:

  • The Coronavirus Entry Ordinance, which has been standardised nationwide since 13 May 2021, applies to all returnees to the Federal Republic of Germany. The corresponding regulations must be observed by employees and students of the TH Wildau! If you have been in a risk area, please also inform the Crisis Team in any case at krisenstab(at)th-wildau.de.
  • With regard to private travel, it is basically the responsibility of the traveller to find out before the planned journey whether the destination is a corona risk area. The travel warnings issued by the Federal Foreign Office and the information published by the RKI on the designation of international risk areas by the Federal Foreign Office, BMG and BMI are decisive in this context.
  • For employees of TH Wildau, a deliberate trip to a risk area and the associated acceptance of the subsequent quarantine order constitutes a breach of the mutual duty of care within the employment relationship and has an impact on the employee's claim to remuneration. Further details can be found in the Chancellor's letter of 04.08.2020.