Employer can't pay ssp

mumto3girls

And I'm wondering what my options are. I'm having major surgery end of January and will be off at least 6 weeks. I have notified my employer and they have said that due to new rules from April 2014 as they are a small business they cannot afford to pay me ssp. I understand this as they will have to employ a replacement for me and they are a new business, but where does this leave me? The only option is to not have surgery but I feel so incapacitated by pain (i am having bowel surgery) that I really need to have this operation. I haven't had any sick leave at all so far and the time off in Jan/Feb is on the advice of the consultant who has said I can't drive/lift etc as I'm having open surgery (4-6 hours operation). Thankyou

Torry_Quine

If you can't get SSP then the employer has to give you a form explaining why and you can then claim for ESA.

lovinituk

blondebubbles wrote: »

Employers can't choose whether or not to pay you SSP.

Are you eligible to it?

I was thinking the same.

The other thing to consider is how long has the OP worked there. Less than 2 years and the business could just let them go instead.

nodiscount

lovinituk wrote: »

I was thinking the same.

The other thing to consider is how long has the OP worked there. Less than 2 years and the business could just let them go instead.

If they are dismissed for asserting a statutory right they do not have to be there 2 years.

Not paying SSP is an unlawful deduction from wages.

Contact the SSP disputes team after getting you employer to fill in a SSP1.

SSP1 form here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/361566/ssp1-oct-14.pdf
Disputes team info:

Direct contact from the employee

An employee may contact any HMRC office directly if they disagree with their employer’s decision. However, all disputes and requests for a decision are dealt with by the Statutory Payments Dispute Team, Room BP 2301, Benton Park View, Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne. NE98 1YS.

The employer should have given the employee Form SSP1, SMP1, SPP1 or SAP1 explaining why they are not entitled to be paid the SP. If the employer has refused to issue the appropriate form they must give the employee a written statement instead.

Although the employee may ask for a decision in writing or by completing Form SSP14, SMP14, SMP56, SPP14 or SAP14 it may be possible to resolve the dispute informally by issuing an opinion without the need for the formal decision. This is often referred to as an “informal decision”.

If there are medical issues involved in the dispute it may be necessary to refer the case to Medical Services for an independent medical opinion based on either an examination or information from the employee's medical practitioner. See SPM50000.

If it is not possible to resolve the dispute informally or by giving a written opinion, a Nominated Officer can give a formal decision under section 8 of SSCTOFA1999/article 7 of SSCTOFO(NI)1999. See SPM60300.

lovinituk

nodiscount wrote: »

If they are dismissed for asserting a statutory right they do not have to be there 2 years.

I didn't say they could be dismissed for asserting a statutory right. But if they've been there less than 2 years, all the business has to say is they no longer require them. They don't have to give a reason.

nodiscount

lovinituk wrote: »

I didn't say they could be dismissed for asserting a statutory right. But if they've been there less than 2 years, all the business has to say is they no longer require them. They don't have to give a reason.

That would be turned a 'dismissal'.

mumto3girls

Thankyou. Am I eligible? I have checked all the info on the gov.co.uk websites and it says I only have to have worked there 1 day and earn more than £111 pwk to be eligible. Yes I have worked there less than 2 years - can they dismiss me for having an operation and having to be absent from work for 6 weeks? I don't think they would/could say that they don't need me anymore because I am the only manager of this site and it can't run without me and another member of staff (who is unqualified and I am qualified). It is a small organisation employing 22 staff over 6 sites. Her reason for not paying me ssp was that she can't afford it.

Another_not_new_user

Whilst agreeing with everything said about SSP being an entitlement if you qualify for it, you just may have signed your "death warrant" in terms of your employment. You are the only qualified person, and they must have a qualified person on site to operate? And they are a small employer who may not be able to afford to pay SSP AND for a replacement for you? Which threatens the viability of the site and other peoples jobs? That is cause for fair dismissal, even after two years. And without two years, you are in a very weak position unless your condition qualifies as a disability, which I assume it does not. So SSP may be a pyrrhic victory if getting it loses you your job for some other reason. You may get a week or two SSP - but if you have no job to return to that that isn't exactly a win. Sometimes what the law says, and the best part of valour, are not the same thing. This may be a situation where you have to make a hard decision. At law you may get a couple of weeks wages (possibly) - but if you were dismissed on sustainability grounds, you probably could not prove that they could afford to pay you SSP and a replacement (and the potential threat to other jobs), and that would be a fair dismissal.

lovinituk

nodiscount wrote: »

That would be turned a 'dismissal'.

Terminating someone's employment is always a dismissal. It's whether it's deemed a fair or unfair dismissal that matters.

pmlindyloo

Another_not_new_user wrote: »

Whilst agreeing with everything said about SSP being an entitlement if you qualify for it, you just may have signed your "death warrant" in terms of your employment. You are the only qualified person, and they must have a qualified person on site to operate? And they are a small employer who may not be able to afford to pay SSP AND for a replacement for you? Which threatens the viability of the site and other peoples jobs? That is cause for fair dismissal, even after two years. And without two years, you are in a very weak position unless your condition qualifies as a disability, which I assume it does not. So SSP may be a pyrrhic victory if getting it loses you your job for some other reason. You may get a week or two SSP - but if you have no job to return to that that isn't exactly a win. Sometimes what the law says, and the best part of valour, are not the same thing. This may be a situation where you have to make a hard decision. At law you may get a couple of weeks wages (possibly) - but if you were dismissed on sustainability grounds, you probably could not prove that they could afford to pay you SSP and a replacement (and the potential threat to other jobs), and that would be a fair dismissal.

Personally I believe this is scaremongering.

First of all the OP is entitled to SSP if she meets the qualifying conditions.

The fact that small businesses cannot claim back the SSP is not her problem.

The OP says that she will be off work for at least 6 weeks. If she does not claim SSP then why should she suffer financially?

As far as the business is concerned then we are not talking vast sums of money if they pay her SSP - what is it? - £86ish a week?

The OP has given them adequate notice for them to get a temporary replacement or transfer someone to take over her job from another site.

This is going to be an ongoing problem for the employer. People do get sick and the employer is going to have to deal with this.

Are they really going to sack someone because they have been sick? Why would they do this? The OP's replacement could go sick too!

This is not the OP's problem. It is the employer's problem and to suggest that the OP should forgo their statutory right is, IMHO, ridiculous as is the idea that they would lose their job.

If the worse came to the worse and they did lose their job (and I do agree that they could)) then the employers are fools and not thinking long term as this will be an ongoing problem for them. They would be better served petitioning the government to reverse the decision rather than penalising their workers.

mumto3girls

I work 22.5 hours (contracted, but actually more like 32 but don't get paid for the extra 10) at £9 an hour so I believe I am eligible for ssp from that perspective?