Statutory Sick Pay for Employees
From 1 January 2023, eligible employees are entitled to statutory sick pay (SSP), bringing Ireland in line with most other European countries. The entitlement will start at three days‘ paid sick leave in 2023, rising incrementally to five days in 2024, seven days in 2025 and eventually 10 days in 2026.
From 2023, workers will be entitled to up to 3 days of sick leave in a year, paid at 70% of gross salary up to a cap of €110. It is intended that the entitlement will rise to up to 10 days sick leave in a year by 2026.
Where an employee has an extended period of illness, the scheme will operate seamlessly with the existing illness benefit system which kicks in on day four of an absence. Once the employee has exhausted their entitlement to paid sick leave, they will move onto illness benefit, if eligible.
As is always the case with workers’ rights legislation, this new law sets out the minimum standard that an employer must provide. It will not prevent employers having superior sick pay schemes of their own to attract and retain staff or on foot of an agreement with a trade union.
It is the latest in a series of improvements to rights and social protections for workers and the self-employed over the last five years, including:
- paternity benefit
- parental leave benefit
- a new public holiday
- protection of tips and service charges
- enhanced maternity benefit
- reintroduction of treatment benefit (dental and optical)
- increases to the national minimum wage
- the extension of social insurance benefits like jobseekers benefit and invalidity pension to the self-employed
If you have any questions, or require assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact us at McMahon and Co.
Article Source: gov.ie – New entitlement to paid sick leave from the new year (www.gov.ie)