Statutory sick pay for agency workers

Middlestitch

A friend is working as a temp through an employment agency. His contract says that for SSP purposes there is one qualifying day per week during any assignment and that day is Wednesday (the one weekday he doesn't work!).

How does this square with what I understood to be a requirement to treat temporary workers no less fairly than their permanent counterparts? Any help much appreciated - I'm as baffled as he is!

Many thanks.

hjb123

Sounds a bit off does that but check out the direct.gov site on agency workers. Or your friend could try contacting ACAS and see what they say.

Saying that if he has agreed to the contract that may be what he is going to get - is he off sick now or just going through the contract?

Middlestitch

Many thanks - he's just found work through them (and in good health, but sensible enough to read before he signs!) and has today been sent the fine print.

eclipse

I work as a flexible worker for NHS professionals - prob not quite the same thing, but it's like working as agency staff (i don't have any contracted hours). They don't pay me SSP at all, I have to claim IB/IS - perhaps that's what he'd have to do in the case of being off sick, to claim up to his weekly allowance (the government thinks we need something like £45 pw to live off, which is probably less than his one day's pay!)

Middlestitch

Glad the government has its finger on the pulse....!!!!

liney

As far as i was aware agency staff are entitled to SSP after working just one day, but only if the company they are actually working for keeps their job open for them. Otherwise they have to claim from the Jobcenter with the forms completed by the agency with the reason they are not paying ticked as an option. There are 'waiting days' of course, but i have not come across a qualifiying day or period for years. SMP still has a qualifying period though.

nenya

If you are an agency worker then the ONLY way you can qualify for SSP is if you are signed off by the doctor. Some companies will give there temps something called a 'couple days grace' meaning they will pay sick pay if there ill for like a week but don't require a sick note from the doctor.

jasonrat

nenya wrote:

If you are an agency worker then the ONLY way you can qualify for SSP is if you are signed off by the doctor. Some companies will give there temps something called a 'couple days grace' meaning they will pay sick pay if there ill for like a week but don't require a sick note from the doctor.

standard sick pay is by law i think that the first three days nothing is paid. after the third day a sick note is required from the doctor. from this ssp is paid. i am unaware of companies giving sick pay willy nilly and its a bad way to go if they do

calleyw

We have just been though this and my husband handed in his sick notes and then was de-registered by the agency to pay his holiday pay and will be sending him his P45 He never asked for them to de-register him. Yes I have no idea either.

He was told that his long term contract had been terminated on the day he got a sick note and no one told him that. Also they said they did not have to pay him SSP and he now has to claim IB which is less than SSP. Even though he had been with the same contract and Agency for 8 weeks. This was all sent though the post no one had the decency to phone him and let him.

I have no idea how it would have been handled if he was doing different contract each week.

Don't know why they changed the law as it looks like they can get of paying SSP by claiming the contact has ended.

He will not be re-registering with them again when he is better.

Yours


Calley