Sick Leave Act 2022

Scottie99

A colleague of mine has a grievance with his/our employer.

His contract allows him 8 weeks paid sick per year. Under the old legislation there was a "waiting period" of three days before his sick pay kicked in. Under the new Sick Leave 2022 it says is "no waiting period".

Apparently our Company didn't pay his first three days this year. They're argument was because they're employment contract provides for more favourable sick pay, the first three days then don't apply.

I personally thought that one of the reasons this legislation came in (according to Ministers) was to stop people having to come into work sick. They gave Covid as a prime example.

Anyone have thoughts on the matter?

SuperBowserWorld

I get 10 days paid sick leave, up from 5.

I did have an operation where I got 10 days to recover before they bumped up to 10. But that was at the employers discretion.

I am not sure what happens after this time, but I hear of people taking months of sick leave and I wonder what the "normal" situation re: paid sick leave is.

TooTired123

I’m interested in this too.

Odelay

Eight weeks paid sick leave per year? Am I reading that right?

caviardreams

"Your employer may offer you more generous sick pay arrangements under its own scheme. If so, your sick leave will be dealt with under that scheme.

That scheme must be more favourable, when viewed as a whole, than the statutory sick pay scheme if it is to apply."

https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/employment_rights_and_conditions/leave_and_holidays/sick_leave.html

Scottie99

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120592132#Comment_120592132

But those are called "contractual sick days" in the legislation. We still have to deal with the first three days.

You could also argue that the losing the first three days isn't favourable

Lenar3556

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058296279/sick-leave-act-2022

The employers argument isn’t quite reasonable. The first three days are payable as per the terms of the act.

Note that the new statutory sick pay is 70% of his normal pay (up to a maximum of €110 per day) and he must be certified by a medical doctor as unfit to work.

Does the contract of employment which provides for 8 weeks have a stipulation in relation to a waiting period? There was a previous position in relation to the claiming of illness benefit, but I am wondering why you referenced it in the context of his contractual 8 weeks?

Is it the case that the contract also provided for a waiting period? (Not that I see it changing the position, I am just curious)

Scottie99

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120593317#Comment_120593317

I'm not sure if his does have a stipulation as my contract is slightly different in regards to sick (TUPE). But I'm assuming the act in regards to the three days would superseded any contract.

The reason why mentioned the eight weeks, is purely just to show the whole picture. The government legislation, my colleagues position and our employers position.

dennyk

Your colleague might get to be one of the cases that sets precedent, since the law is quite new. It most likely will come down to a judgement by the WRC or the courts as to whether the employer's plan is "as a whole, more favourable than statutory sick leave" or not. The three-day waiting period is obviously less favourable, but that's only one of the factors that will be taken into consideration, and the fact that the employer's plan provides eight weeks instead of three days and (presumably) provides 100% of their normal pay without a cap instead of 70% with a cap of €110 a day are significantly more favourable than the statutory requirements, so it is certainly possible that the employer's plan might be deemed more favourable on the whole.

Lenar3556

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120600450#Comment_120600450

Interesting.

I would have thought that the courts would be slow to muddy the water on something that, as it stands, is pretty clear cut.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120601987#Comment_120601987

It's not at all clear cut: the majority of people would take 1-3 days sick leave, not 8 weeks.

For the workforce as a whole, a 3-day standdown is vastly less advantageous.

Peregrinus

What the Act actually says is that it doesn't apply to an employer who has a sick leave scheme that confers "over the course of a reference period set out in the scheme" benefits that are, as a whole, more favourable than the statutory benefits.

I'm not quite sure what the bolded words mean but I think they mean something like this: if the scheme provides a maximum of 56 days (8 weeks) sick pay in any 12-month period, 12 months is the "reference period". Since 56 days is greater than 10 days, that scheme would provide more favourable benefits over the course of the reference period than the statutory scheme would.

If that is what the Act means, I agree with Mrs OBumble that it looks odd. That scheme will certainly be better for an employee who has the misfortune to be ill for a prolonged period, but if it also includes a 3-day waiting period then the great bulk of employees will receive either nothing at all, or much less than they would have got under the statutory scheme. Conceivably, the scheme could cost the employer less overall than the statutory scheme would have cost.