Sickness can happen at any time, especially with dramatic swings in weather that can happen with the change of the season.
To keep employers prepared year-round, here we offer our essential tips for sick leave and sick pay...
Sick leave legislation in Ireland
Ireland’s statutory sick pay scheme was announced in 2022 and came into effect in 2023 with the Sick Leave Act. Currently, employees are entitled to five days of paid sick leave per year.
Any unused sick leave expires at the end of the calendar year, and the rate of pay (70% of gross daily pay, capped at €110 a day) is calculated depending on the average earnings of each individual employee.
All employees can avail of this scheme, as long as they have completed 13 weeks of service.
Workplace sick leave and sick pay
Aside from statutory sick leave, companies may also choose to create their own sick leave policy.
Once the employer has decided on the exact details of this sick leave and sick pay policy, these details should be communicated to all employees. It’s crucial that this policy sets out the procedure to be followed if an employee is out sick.
Best practice states that this policy should set out who the employee needs to contact and when this contact should be made, e.g. you should notify your direct manager by phone call prior the time you would normally start work. The employee should explain the nature of their illness and when they expect to be back to work.
The policy should also set out when the employee is expected to provide medical certification. For example, the employer may specify that after three consecutive days of absence due to illness, the employee must provide the employer with a sick certification from a medical practitioner. This cert should state how long the employee will be absent for.
Unauthorised absences
It's important to monitor whether these procedures are followed by the employee. If the employee doesn't follow procedures correctly, it may be categorised as an unauthorised absence and will subsequently be subject to disciplinary procedures.
Unauthorised absences occur, for example, where the employee doesn't contact their direct manager in the timeframe set out in the employee handbook. Or it may be that they don't provide a sick cert within the time frame set out in the policy.
Upon an employee’s return from an authorised absence due to illness, employers should conduct a return-to-work interview with the employee.
Details of this interview should also be set out in the policy. These meetings are important, as management can uncover if the employee is having any problems which the company may be able to help with.
Providing this support to the employee may prevent more absences due to illness in the future.
Need our help?
For further complimentary advice on sick leave and pay from an expert, our advisors are ready to take your call any time day or night. Call us on at 1800 719 226.
