Understanding Sick Pay: A Guide for Employers

Tummy aches, cold bugs, dreaded man flu, migraines, the sniffles. We all get sick. As a business owner, you have to juggle both the well being of your team and your business. So what does your employees continued absence mean for you financially?

This is where it is good to have a basic knowledge of UK sick pay law (you are in the right place)!

Here’s all you need to know about paying your employees while they’re off sick.

SSP IS THE MINIMUM YOU MUST PAY YOUR EMPLOYEE WHILE THEY’RE OFF SICK

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is a government mandated scheme that allows eligible employees to receive £109.40 a week for up to 28 weeks while they’re off sick (correct as of Oct 2023).

SSP is the minimum legal requirement that you must pay your employees.

In order to be eligible for SSP, your employee must:

• Be classed as an employee and have an employment contract

• Have already done some work under that contract

• Earn an average of at least £123 per week

• and have been ill for at least 4 days in a row (including any non working days)

Your employee won’t start earning SSP until they’ve been sick for at least four days, meaning those who are off for just a day or two won’t be eligible. If, for example, your employee became ill on a Thursday and was unwell through the weekend, they’d be able to start claiming SSP by Monday as non working days count in this calculation.

After seven days (under UK sick pay law), and in order for your employee to continue receiving SSP, fit notes or sick notes must be provided, they confirm that your employee are off certified by a professional like a GP or a registered nurse.

YOUR EMPLOYEE WONT QUALIFY FOR SSP IF THEY:

1. have received the maximum amount of SSP (28 weeks)

2. are getting Statutory Maternity Pay

3. received benefits like Employment and Support Allowance within 12 weeks of starting or returning to work with you

WHO PAYS SSP?

All employers must pay Statutory Sick Pay to eligible employees.

You should include all SSP payments in an employee’s regular weekly or monthly payslip. You also need to make sure you deduct the necessary tax and NI contributions.

IMPLEMENTING YOUR OWN COMPANY SICK PAY SCHEME

SSP is the bare minimum you must legally pay your employees while they’re off sick. However, you may instead choose to implement your own Company Sick Pay scheme inclusive of additional company sick pay in order to offer more support to your team while they’re unwell.

The three most important rules to remember for your Company Sick Pay scheme are:

1. You must pay them the equivalent of, or more than they’d get from SSP.

2. Get it in writing make sure your company sick policy (and all your company policies!) are clearly outlined both for you and your team.

3. Keep it consistent AND APPLY TO ALL YOUR EMPLOYEES or else you could open yourself up to claims of discrimination.

Handling all of this on your own, on top of running your business and squeezing in a coffee break here or there, can be overwhelming.

Outsourcing your HR support can not only save you time but also help you navigate some of the minefields that come along with looking after your team.

PREVENTION IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN A CURE

As a business owner, there’s not much you can do to stop an employee from being full of the flu and dosed up to the max. But you can make a difference in your team’s mental wellbeing.

We spend a huge portion of our lives at work and it’s our responsibility as business owners and (human beings!) to create a kind, caring and supportive workplace for the people that work with us.

Did you know!!!

As an employer, you do not have any tax, National Insurance or reporting obligations if you

provide welfare counselling services for your employees.

You are entitled to a tax and NIC-free exemption to fund one health-screening assessment and/or one medical check-up per year, per employee.

Above all, it’s important to regularly check-in with your team, ask them how they’re doing and create a workplace where people feel safe to talk and open up. By understanding any underlying reasons why you employees are taking time off, and by consistently monitoring absence levels, can support in the prevention of absence overall in your workplace.

BE CLEAR AND CONSISTENT WITH ANY FORMAL ABSENCE RELATED ACTION

As an employer it is best practice to ensure that:

Your employees terms and conditions cover whether or not they will be paid during any sickness absence, and if so, how much and for how long.

You have an up to scratch Sickness Absence Policy that sets out everything relating to sickness absence; from how and when an employee should report their absence, to how you will manage that absence should it become of a concern.

Setting out a clear pathway (from the moment you employee someone) through the process will allow all those involved to know exactly what is required of them and what will happen if and when they are absent due to sickness.

DON'T DO IT ALONE - CALL AN EXPERT TO HELP

Most cases of sickness absence will be straightforward. However, there will be those that are more difficult and have wider, more complex issues. Employers aren’t expected to know everything about medical conditions, what’s best for an employee and/or how they can help them. But, they are expected to do all they reasonably can when managing an employee’s sickness absence.

This is particularly important when you are managing employees whose absence levels have become a business concern and could potentially result in formal action up to a dismissal.

In these cases, you should think about getting professional HR advice and support to help steer you through the minefield.

If you need help on this or anything else in this article, contact Bee Connected HR for more information.

www.beeconnectedhr.com