Long-term trend: mental-illness sick days 2000–2024
Mental-illness sick days have tripled since 2000.
While total sick days rose around 25 % between 2000 and 2024, mental-illness sick days per 100 insured tripled. Structural breaks emerge around 2007 (burnout becomes mainstream), 2018 (depression awareness) and 2020 (pandemic effect).
24-year growth in mental-illness sick days
Multiplier 2000 → 2024
Days / 100 insured (2000)
Days / 100 insured (2024)
Pandemic effect 2020/21
24 years of progression
DAK data show a largely monotonic rise of mental-illness sick days since 2000 — with three-and-a-half visible structural breaks.
Structural breaks
- 2007/08 — burnout becomes mainstream as a recognised diagnosis
- 2013 — § 5 ArbSchG explicitly names mental load (GB Psych mandatory)
- 2018 — awareness shift, depression more visible in reports
- 2020/21 — pandemic effect adds +11 % in the acute year
- 2024 — plateau at high level, no decline detectable
Sources
- 1
- 2
BPtK — Studie zu Krankschreibungen wegen psychischer Erkrankungen
Bundespsychotherapeutenkammer, 2024
Quelle öffnen Abgerufen: 2026-05-07 - 3
We use deeplink-friendly originals. Charts are redrawn from the data — no 1:1 copies. For Statista data the underlying primary source (e.g. WIdO, AOK) is named explicitly.
Further reading
Related datasets
Sick days mental illness
+55 % · Increase in mental-illness sick days 2014–2024
Burnout burden AOK 2024
184 Tage · Sick days per 100 AOK members from burnout (2024)
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