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Employee sickness cost businesses over £1.5 billion each year - of which some sicknesses are not genuine. Statutory sick pay entitlement (SSP) starts if a legitimate illness means an employee has been absent for at least 4 days. If an employee is under 16 or over 65, or if an employee earns (in an average week) less than the National Insurance lower earnings limit of £77, they are not entitled to SSP. In these cases, the Inland Revenue recommend that the employee is given form SSP1 and contacts their local Jobcentre Plus or social security office to claim incapacity benefit. An employee does not have to be employed for any particular length of time before entitlement starts. There is no specific need for medical evidence to start sick pay. If the employer has no reason to doubt the sickness of the employee then SSP can be paid without medical evidence. SSP is payable at the weekly rate of £64.35 (or at the set daily rates if a full weeks pay is not applicable) for up to 28 weeks in a year. Income tax and employee's National Insurance contributions are still applicable to the SSP. It is sometimes possible to claim back a percentage of SSP costs through National Insurance and Pay as you Earn (PAYE) payments. A full Inland Revenue guide to sick pay, including the rates and requirements, as well as details on how to claim back some of the costs is available online at: www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/pdfs/emp2003/e14_2003.pdf If high absence due
to sickness is causing problems for your business, it may be worth considering
investing in an occupational health individual or department to identify
potential problems, and find ways of
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