Coronavirus: Current Measures and Recommendations

In case of any questions, please contact the occupational medical service of the University of Mannheim.

In order to implement the Hygiene Policy, the assembly and filling of permanently installed disinfectant dispensers at the main entrances to the university buildings will be organized centrally. In addition, Department IV provides centrally financed and stocked protection and hygiene articles (such as medical-grade face masks). Information on ordering can be found on the website of Department IV (in German).

On the intranet, you will find bilingual signs with behavioral rules and recommendations during the coronavirus pandemic. Please download, print and put up them up in your work area if applicable.

The three documents below will inform you about what to do in case you are tested positive for COVID-19 or if you as superior are informed that one of the members of your team or department was tested positive. You will also find a text template for communicating with the staff members. If you notice an extraordinary high number of cases, please get in touch with Occupational Safety and Health.

In case a participant of one of your classes notifies you that they were tested positive for the coronavirus, please take note of the following information on what to do next:

However, in the interest of all people involved, we would like to ask you to inform the other participants of your class about this confirmed case of infection as a precaution. This is of course, after you have got consent to divulge this information from the infected person. You will find a text template to communicate with your students at the end. In case your students have questions after reading your information, please advise them to speak to a physician.

Please inform the task force about the situation in any case and let us know, which class was affected on which day. You should also inform your chair and the dean’s office of your school about the situation. If you have any questions, please write an e-mail to task-force uni-mannheim.de.

Text template “Information for the students”:

Dear Students,

Today we would like to inform you that one of the participants in the class „___“ on weekday, date, was tested positive for the coronavirus.

Please reconsider whether you have adhered to the DHM formula (distance, hygiene, mask) during the class. Please make sure to test yourself regularly for the virus and observe the regulations on self-quarantine (CoronaVO Absonderung, in German). In case you feel unsure about the situation, please reach out to your doctor with any additional questions.

We would like to remind you that in case you develop symptoms that are typical for a coronavirus infection, you are not allowed to enter the campus and you may not participate in classes and events of the university until your symptoms have been checked by a doctor.

We kindly ask you to watch yourself closely for symptoms of a coronavirus infection and, regardless of symptoms, test yourself regularly. The Central Administration also recommends using the Corona-Warn-App of the Federal Government.

In case you have any questions to the university, please send an e-mail to task-force uni-mannheim.de.

Kind regards and please take care!

All employees working on the premises receive only one free at-home test kit per week. The number of test kits per person and week has been adapted to the new draft of the SARS-Cov-2 occupational health and safety regulation. We kindly ask you to consider this in your orders.

The university will provide test kits to all employees (including student assistants) who (have to) work on campus, either occasionally or regularly, and all those taking part in on-campus examinations. The (self-swab) test is voluntary for employees and does not replace strict adherence to the hygiene policy.

How do employees get their weekly Covid-19 test kit?
Per institution/division/chair, only one order should be submitted. Please contact your superior if you want to make use of the test kits provided by the university. Your superior keeps track of the demand or estimates the demand for your institution and submits an order for all employees. Every employee who works on campus may receive one Covid-19 test kit per week. In order to provide all institutions with test kits, superiors may order only for the next two weeks. After that, a new order has to be submitted. Supervisors or staff members commissioned by supervisors send their orders to hygienebedarf uni-mannheim.de. The institutions will receive the test kits by internal mail in a single delivery.

How to take the test
The Covid-19 tests provided by the university are at-home tests. This means that the tests will not be performed by medical professionals. You will receive the tests by internal mail. Please take the test at home and follow the instructions for use in the package insert. On the website of ZEIT Online, for example, you will find a video with step-by-step instructions.

When should I test?
After you have received the at-home Covid-19 test kits, we ask you to take a test once per week on one of the days you are spending on campus before you enter the university’s premises. If you test positive, this is the only way to react in due time and to prevent a possible infection of colleagues and students you might meet on this day.

What should I do if I test positive/negative for Covid-19?
Positive test result: If the result of your at-home test is positive, please do not enter the campus. In this case, please stay at home or return to your home as soon as possible for self-isolation. To make sure that the result is correct, a PCR test needs to be taken. Please contact your physician or call 116 117. On our website on coronavirus measures, you will find more information on what to do if a team member tested positive for the coronavirus.

Negative test result: You may enter the campus. Please note that the test is not 100% accurate and provides results only for the moment in time that the test is collected. It is a useful addition to the hygiene policy, but no replacement.

Persons showing symptoms indicative of the coronavirus (particularly fever, dry cough and shortness of breath, headaches, running nose, sore throat) should not enter the premises of the university. In accordance with occupational health and safety regulations, employees are prohibited from entering the campus if they have symptoms typical of Corona or other colds.

If employees show symptoms of Corona while being on campus, we kindly ask them to leave the workplace and stay at home until their symptoms have been checked by a doctor.

Please note: Currently, the university cannot authorize any business trips to areas of variants of concern! Please find out before your business trip whether the country you are planning to travel to is classified as one of these areas (details available on the RKI website). This also applies to business trips that were approved before the area in question was classified as an area of variants of concern. Should the area you traveled to be classified as a high-risk area or area of variants of concern after your arrival, please contact thehead of Division Vimmediately.

Business trips to areas that are neither high-risk areas nor areas of variants of concern
The number of employees who are put at additional risk of infection on business trips is to be reduced to a minimum necessary to complete the task. In view of the pandemic situation at the destination, please check whether the business trips can be substituted by electronic means of communication or reduced to a minimum. 

In cases in which it is necessary to participate in a business trip to a non-risk area for work-related purposes, an individual decision can be made upon request. For such an individual decision to be made, we need the following documents in advance:

1. the written justification of the superior why the trip is necessary and why the purpose of the business trip cannot be achieved by participating in digital form and
2. a confirmation of the staff member planning the trip that they will adhere to the prevailing hygiene regulations of the University of Mannheim during their entire business trip.
   Please note: Our recently updated business travel authorization form already features the necessary confirmations of the requester and the supervisor. The form is available on the intranet. If you are using the new form you are already making the necessary confirmations with your signature. An additional separate confirmation is not necessary. 

3. For business trips abroad, we require confirmation from the traveler that he/she has full vaccination coverage (in German) and private health insurance. Your written confirmation is sufficient for us, we do not require any concrete evidence. In order to avoid delays in processing, please submit the confirmation together with the business trip application, i.e. either by e-mail or by internal mail. As business trips abroad are currently still approved by individual decision, we ask for your understanding that we require this confirmation again for each business trip application.

Please submit all relevant documents in due time and consider that the processing time for approving the business trip is two weeks. Please note that the general insurance coverage and the option for reimbursement are subject to the approval of the business trip.

In order to submit your request and in case you have any other questions regarding business trips, please contact the travel expenses office of Division V via e-mail, if possible. 

Business trips to high-risk areas
Business trips to so-called high-risk areas are currently not admissible at all (please see the list of high-risk areas and areas of variants of concern, information on international risk areas of the Federal Foreign Office, Ministry of Health and Ministry of the Interior and the Covid-19 dashboard of the RKI). This also applies to business trips that have been approved before the area in question was classified as an high-risk area. In case as the area you traveled to is classified as an high-risk area after your arrival, please contact the head of Division V immediately.

Please keep informed about the development of the coronavirus pandemic at your destination during your business trip. Please also take note of the information provided by the Federal Foreign Office, the Robert Koch Institute and the Ministry of Social Affairs.

Mandatory testing and quarantine
Please note and observe the current regulations for entry to or return to Baden-Württemberg (CoronaEinreiseV) regarding mandatory testing and quarantine.

What this means for you: Please do not come back to the university until you have fully complied with the regulations on entry or return (please see above) and especially if you are required to quarantine yourself. Should you have questions regarding retuning to your workplace at the University of Mannheim, please contact the head of Division V (from home).

Cancellation fees
Due to the current situation, we recommend that you only make bookings that are refundable in the event of cancellation. In case the organizer cancels the event due to the pandemic (please include proof), the cancellation fees, e.g. for hotel, train, flight or attendance fees, are refundable with the business travel expense report. The traveler needs to prove that they have made an effort to get a cost-neutral cancellation.

Voucher refund
Various transport companies are forced by the coronavirus regulations to cancel planned business trips and are now offering refunds in form of vouchers instead of monetary reimbursement. In general, the University of Mannheim does not accept vouchers issued as reimbursement. Please do not accept a voucher before you get in touch with out travel expenses office. Your contact is Diana Lechner.

To enable teachers and employees at the University of Mannheim to work well together in times of home office and hybrid teaching, the University IT (UNIT) provides a range of digital services:

• Zoom or MS Teams for video calls and meetings,
• Microsoft 365 as an extensive platform for communication and collaboration,
• BigBlueButton for oral exams,
• ILIAS as e-learning platform for designing digital teaching formats, information on digital exams, and access to class-specific documents.

You can book advising appointments with the staff members of the administration via phone, e-mail or Microsoft Teams. Booking virtual meetings with several persons is also possible.

Online appointments
You have the option to book appointments with the responsible advisors online. You can find a link to book appointments online in the contact information of the respective contact person. For matters regarding student affairs, it is possible to book appointments on the web pages of Division II. For matters regarding human resources or other topics of Division V, you can send appointment requests via the intranet page of Division V. Persons who are not employed at the university can use the online contact form on the web page of Division V to get in touch. For infection control reasons and due to the room conditions, these appointments will primarily take place via MS Teams or telephone. In special cases, appointments may also be possible in person.

Signing contracts
Wherever possible, contracts will be concluded either electronically or by (internal) mail. If this is not possible, for instance in the case of employment contracts, you will receive an individual appointment in person.

Requesting certificates
The Central Administration are happy to send you confirmations and certificates either electronically or by (internal) mail.

Submitting documents
You can send files and documents either electronically or, if an original is required, by (internal) mail to the Central Administration.

Janitor
All janitors are working during their regular working hours and can be contacted as usual.

Reception Desk
The Reception Desk at the main entrance is occupied by two persons at all times (24 hours / 7 days a week). In case of any questions or problems, please contact the hotline of the Reception Desk by calling 181-1110.

Technical Equipment
All technical equipment and systems can be used as in times before the start of the pandemic.

Ventilation systems
All measures of the University of Mannheim aim at minimizing the risk of infection and stopping the further spread of the coronavirus. However, it is impossible to guarantee full protection. According to the latest scientific knowledge, the coronavirus is primarily transmitted through droplets. Airing generally reduces the risk of infection through aerosols and therefore plays a vital role in our concept to slow the spread of the coronavirus. For this reason, we recommend to air rooms frequently with as much fresh outdoor air as possible.

At the University of Mannheim, all commonly used rooms and offices can at least be aired by manually opening the windows. Larger rooms with a possible seating capacity of more than 50 persons are usually equipped with a ventilation system. When using such large rooms, ventilation systems (RLT systems) are absolutely necessary from a hygiene and energetic point of view to fulfill the legal requirements.

RLT systems ensure a high level of safety, because they purify the incoming air from outside with filters to separate small particles. As a result, the secure supply of purified air in an RLT system dilutes possible contaminations and lowers the number of viruses in a room. Furthermore, special zones and pressure controls ensure that contaminants from outgoing air of a room cannot spread throughout the whole building. In addition, RLT systems can be operated in every weather condition.

Find more information on the RLT ventilation system on the intranet.

In order to minimize the risk of infection, the university management has instructed all superiors to make sure the adopted measures are implemented in their respective divisions and departments. Implementation of the measures must be documented. The form for risk assessment, which you can find on the intranet, is intended to be a checklist for superiors and is to support help them fulfill their responsibility in this regard.

The necessary measures that superiors need to implement before their employees return to the workplace include a safety training regarding the fundamentals of the hygiene policy. The safety training needs to take place on the employees’ first day back at their offices at the latest. Participation in the online safety training needs to be documented by means of a signature and needs to be forwarded to the superior. Please find the respective form on the intranet.

Currently, the mandate to work from home for employers and employees ceased to apply as of 20 March 2022 when the new SARS-Cov-2 occupational health and safety regulation became effective.

In view of the high number of coronavirus cases, the University of Mannheim has decided to apply an interim regulation regardless of the health and safety regulations. Up until and including 25 May 2022 employees have the option to work from home full-time. This is if their superiors agree and provided that the nature of the tasks allows for working from home.

The current SARS-Cov-2 occupational health and safety regulation of the federal government that recommends working from home amongst other things is expected to expire on 25 May 2022. However, as the rate of infections remains very high, the President’s Office plans to extend the hygiene policy of the University of Mannheim until further notice. This means that the option to mostly work from home remains in place after 27 May 2022. This is to protect risk groups from a possible infection and to ensure that the university can keep operating. Approval of the option to work from home remains with the respective superiors. In case more than one person works in an office at the university, please make sure the room is aired properly and keep a safety distance of 1.5 meters at all times. You will receive more detailed information as soon as possible via e-mail.

As of 3 April, students and teachers no longer need to present a 2G or 3G proof to participate in on-campus classes. This means they no longer need a Classroom Pass. The data stored in the Classroom Pass Center will be deleted in accordance with legal requirements.

The new Coronavirus Ordinance of 8 February 2022 stipulates that contact tracing is no longer required for events. This applies to courses but also to all other events taking place at the university, such as work meetings. For you, this means you are no longer required to register for in-person events on campus via the Checkin app or by completing a hard copy form. The person running the event or meeting is no longer required to save the data of participants for the health authorities.

Spring Semester 2022
The current pandemic situation requires us to change our plans for the spring semester 2022. In general, the spring semester 2022 will be an on-campus semester, as already announced in the fall semester 2021/2022.  Upon consultation with the deans for student affairs and the student representatives, the President's Office has decided to make the following adjustments:

We want to ensure that classes can be held, but we also want to protect us all against infection. Classes that take place until 8 April 2022 may be held in person or digitally. The teachers will take the individual framework conditions (type of class, number of participants, room situation, infection rates and quarantine situation among the participants) into account when deciding if the class will be held on campus or digitally. They will inform you if there are changes to the plan for your class. As of 25 April 2022, classes will generally be held on campus again.

With the return to on-campus classes, examinations will also take place on campus. However, individual examinations can take place online. Your examiner will inform you of the exam form at the time of registration in spring 2022 at the latest.

Please note:

• The President's Office still recommends wearing a surgical face mask or an FFP2 face mask in courses (not for teachers).
• In Examinations,the President's Office recommends wearing a surgical face mask or an FFP2 face mask until you are seated.
• We recommend that vaccinated and recovered people also take advantage of the possibility of performing free rapid tests.
• If your class is held on campus and you are unable to attend (e.g. due to quarantine or isolation), up until the Easter break, we will ensure that you are able to continue your studies without restraints by providing you with alternative offers.

However, if infection rates rise in the fall, it is generally possible that the measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus will be adapted on the state level. If there are any changes in the legal or factual situation, we will inform you as soon as possible.

On their website, the Department of Gender Equality and Social Diversity has compiled a number of useful links on various topics  – all of them are related to the issue of reconciling family and career or family and studies during the coronavirus crisis.

The flexible working hours remain unchanged until further notice so that employees can work between 5 a.m. until 10 p.m.

The requirement to avoid personal contact set forth in the Corona-ARbSchV applies to all work events (such as departmental meetings, research meetings). Meetings of statutory bodies of the University of Mannheim, or other work-related events may be held in person, if there is an operational or official necessity. A decision on whether a work-related event shall be held in person or online must be made carefully and in consideration of the general pandemic situation (incidence levels, etc.). For further information, please see point 7 of the hygiene policy.

Approval of operational necessity
Operational necessity is, for example, if a research meeting in person is deemed as important and necessary and cannot be replaced by an online meeting for lack of quality of said online meeting.

The operational necessity is checked and an event must be approved by

•  the event organizer in case of max. 100 participants,
• the Service- and Marketing GmbH upon request in case of 101 participants or more. In case of doubt, the Service- and Marketing GmbH and the event organizer may contact the Task Force, and

If an event is approved, the following requirements must be fulfilled:

• All participants must keep a distance of 1.5 to 2 meters at all times. The President's Office can, possibly subject to certain conditions, allow for exceptions with valid reasons.
• For meetings of statutory bodies of the University of Mannheim, or other work-related events the President's Office recommends wearing a surgical face mask or an FFP2 face mask to all participants, except the speakers who need to maintain the minimum distance. Employees are obligated to wear a surgical face mask or an FFP2 face mask if other participants in the meeting are not wearing face masks. When seated, the mask may be put down, provided that the minimum distance of 1.5 m can be maintained.

The room must be aired intensively and frequently.

To keep the groups as small as possible, guests are to join meetings via video or telephone conference.

The rooms in which the meetings are held are sanitized by the cleaning services according to the respective cleaning policy in place.

The university post office is open at the usual opening hours (find more information on the intranet). You do not need to make an appointment in advance. Please maintain the mandatory distance when picking up your mail and wait in front of the post office in case a colleague is already inside.

In case a staff member must go into an ordered quarantine, the respective staff member should work from home/perform telework insofar as this is possible for the type of work they need to perform. If this makes it possible for the staff member to continue working, the claim for payment/renumeration still exists. If the staff member cannot work from home/perform telework, they usually receive a compensation according to the act on the prevention and control of infectious diseases (Infektionsschutzgesetz); civil servants still receive their renumeration. However, the current regulatory provisions limit the claim for compensation/renumeration as follows:

Employees lose their claim for compensation if they are not vaccinated (exception: being younger than 18 years old or not being able to get vaccinated due to medical reasons) or if they went on an avoidable trip to an area that was already classified as a risk area on the starting date of that trip and this is the reason why they must quarantine.

Civil servants lose their claim for renumeration during a quarantine if they are responsible for the reason why they must quarantine. Since getting vaccinated is not compulsory, a person is responsible for a quarantine if they behave in a risky way, for example if they travel to a high-risk area without valid reason.

In case a staff member is ordered to quarantine, the employer who is represented by the Human Resources department must evaluate if the claim for compensation/renumeration exists or if the staff member is responsible for the quarantine. Therefore, the employer is allowed to ask the staff member why they must go into quarantine. For staff members who are not vaccinated, the employer is also allowed to ask why they did not get vaccinated so far. Upon request, the staff member must submit a proof of vaccination or recovery to the Human Resources department. In case a staff member was not vaccinated due to medical reasons, it is sufficient to submit a medical certificate which must not state the specific reason.

Please note that the claim for compensation/renumeration is lost in case staff members do not answer these questions or do not submit the respective proof.

Private trips to risk areas
It is your private decision if you travel to a risk area in your private time. However, please note that you must comply with the prevailing regulations for mandatory testing and quarantine according to the decree of the Ministry of Social Affairs on quarantine measures for entering and returning to the Land of Baden-Württemberg in order to contain the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus (CoronaVO EQ) when you return to Baden-Württemberg from private trips. The relevant regulations are available here (in German).

Please bear in mind that you have to check with your superior/s that not only your vacation/absence is approved but also the following absence due to the mandatory quarantine.

In this context, we would like to point out that we cannot grant you paid leave while you are in mandatory quarantine, since this absence is based on your private decision. For this reason, you have to check with your superior/s if you can take days of leave for the duration of the quarantine or if – for some or all of that time – you can work from home, use overtime hours, or if unpaid leave is an option. If the interests of the university generally allow that the days in quarantine can be taken off directly after the holiday, this period must be covered by one of the measures mentioned above or by a combination of these. Paid leave is not possible. Please note that if you travel to a high-risk area without valid reason and you must quarantine afterwards, the claim for compensation/renumeration is lost. For further information please follow this link.

In cases of doubt, please contact the head of Division V.

Please inform yourself about the development of the coronavirus pandemic in your destination and about possible travel restrictions before and during your private trip. Please also take note of the information from the Federal Foreign Office, the Robert Koch Institute and the Ministry of Social Affairs.

Should the coronavirus situation worsen during your private trip and the region or country that you are in is classified as a risk area after you arrive, you must observe the current regulations for entering and returning to Baden-Württemberg. Should you have questions regarding retuning to your workplace at the University of Mannheim, please contact the head of Division V (from home).

Events that are neither work-related events nor courses and that are organized by external persons not belonging to the University of Mannheim may take place under the conditions set forth in the Corona Ordinance (CoronaVO) or in a general ordinance of the City of Mannheim.

Such events are approved upon request by

• the Service & Marketing GmbH in case of max. 100 participants. In case of doubt, the Service & Marketing GmbH contacts the task force.
• the task force (task-force uni-mannheim.de) in case of 101 participants or more.

Catering can be offered under the conditions set forth in the Information Sheet on Event Catering at the University of Mannheim, if the minimum distance can be maintained. The university’s regulations for the allocation of rooms remain unaffected. Organizers of an event need a hygiene concept that covers at least the standards set forth by the hygiene policy of the University of Mannheim.

Our guidelines for a fair interview process during the coronavirus pandemic are available on the intranet.