Statutory Sick Pay Scheme

On 1st January 2023, Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) was introduced in Ireland. This means that employees, subject to certain conditions, are entitled up to 3 statutory sick leave days. Sick pay will be paid by employers at a rate of 70% of an employees wage, subject to a daily threshold of €110. Both full and part-time employees can avail of SSP under the scheme.

The entitlement to paid sick leave is being phased in over 4 years:

• 2023 – 3 days sick leave covered
• 2024 – 5 days sick leave covered
• 2025 – 7 days sick leave covered
• 2026 – 10 days sick leave covered

The statutory sick pay will be in addition to other leave entitlements such as annual leave, parental and maternity leave as well as public holidays. 

As an employer, you must keep proper records for each employee and they must be maintained for 4 years.  It is important to be aware of your obligation under the new legislation as you may be convicted and fined up to €2500.

What your employees might ask about the scheme?

• Employees must have completed 13 weeks’ continuous service before availing of statutory sick leave.
• Employee must provide their employer with a certificate from a registered medical practitioner and the certificate must state that the employee named is unfit to work due to their illness or injury.
• The leave must be in relation to a day or days when an employee would ordinarily work but is incapable of working due to illness or injury.
• The leave can be taken on consecutive days or non-consecutive days.

While statutory sick pay will be beneficial for your employees, you may need to make changes to your payroll processes to adapt to the new rules.  At OfficeHelper we keep up to date with new legislation and we can set up and implement payroll processes to manage SSP!