Ssp?

aaroncaz

sangie595 wrote: »

I think you really need to stop giving one sentence information. Tell people what is actually happening and there's a good chance people can assist. Give one liner basics, and they don't know enough to help.

And no, SSP can no longer be recovered from the government. That used to be the case for small employers, but it isn't any longer.

I have just rang HMRC and they said the employer pays SSP and can claim it back, if there's a dispute and employer refuses to pay them raise a dispute with SSP1 form.

The background behind this is my line manger is refusing to pay CSP for 1 week and 1 day because I failed to attend 2 absence meeting as I said I was not up to it, was off with hand injury and stress, had fit note etc... now they can do absence meeting over the phone but she refused to do so even though another employee had one a couple of weeks before. I am back at work now on reduced hours for 3 weeks though I have had to fight for that, as you are allowed 6 weeks but was told it was only 2. I do have a absence review meeting next week when i can take an instore rep(not a union one) in with me.( I will trigger and may incur a warning) I am going to raise all these issues then. I also rang HR this morning who told me I had to claim SSP when I rang her back, she said she didn't know the policy and could not advise but I pointed out to her she had already advised me I had to claim! What a farce and this is a big company. It's the inconsistencies in how they treat individual employees.

sangie595

The employer can't claim SSP back - that stopped years ago, so I have no idea why HMRC said they could!

It seems a bit odd that the employer arranged not one, but two, absence meetings during your time off when that period was only a week! Do you have other periods of sickness? It does seem that the circumstances suggest they don't believe you. Is that the case? How long have you worked there? Given that it is a large company, it would be unusual for a manager to prevent a statutory payment without substantial reason and support from other managers or HR. In other words, without a good reason - at least in their eyes. Company sick pay is often discretionary, and in this case it clearly is. And return to work processes are often also discretionary - so I suspect that policy says "up to" six weeks, not just exactly six weeks. So, assuming that for some reason your manager is really annoyed with you, they have a lot of discretion to "get you back" by refusing all the discretionary things. They could even have refused to allow you to return at all until fully fit. Given that, it is very disturbing that they have gone as far as refusing SSP.

Do you have any idea why they would go that far?

aaroncaz

sangie595 wrote: »

The employer can't claim SSP back - that stopped years ago, so I have no idea why HMRC said they could!

It seems a bit odd that the employer arranged not one, but two, absence meetings during your time off when that period was only a week! Do you have other periods of sickness? It does seem that the circumstances suggest they don't believe you. Is that the case? How long have you worked there? Given that it is a large company, it would be unusual for a manager to prevent a statutory payment without substantial reason and support from other managers or HR. In other words, without a good reason - at least in their eyes. Company sick pay is often discretionary, and in this case it clearly is. And return to work processes are often also discretionary - so I suspect that policy says "up to" six weeks, not just exactly six weeks. So, assuming that for some reason your manager is really annoyed with you, they have a lot of discretion to "get you back" by refusing all the discretionary things. They could even have refused to allow you to return at all until fully fit. Given that, it is very disturbing that they have gone as far as refusing SSP.

Do you have any idea why they would go that far?

They are not refusing SSP just saying I must put in a claim for it. (And now HR says they don't know the policy on this and to contact my line manager who was the one who said I must do it myself!)

I have been with the company 9 years and was off for just over 4 weeks, but the 1st meeting was called when i had been off for 2 weeks, the 2nd I'd been off for 3 weeks.....then was off a further week and 1 day. My level of sickness are very low. They have a tendency now tp try to get ppl back to work quickly calling meetings etc.... not known them to withhold CSP often though. Plus if my line manger did withhold CSP pay then surely she should have arranged for SSP to be paid. I had a fit note right up until I returned. I realise the policy may say up to 6 weeks reduced hours, but my complaint is some get it and others don't. It's inconsistent.

sangie595

aaroncaz wrote: »

They are not refusing SSP just saying I must put in a claim for it. (And now HR says they don't know the policy on this and to contact my line manager who was the one who said I must do it myself!)

I have been with the company 9 years and was off for just over 4 weeks, but the 1st meeting was called when i had been off for 2 weeks, the 2nd I'd been off for 3 weeks.....then was off a further week and 1 day. My level of sickness are very low. They have a tendency now tp try to get ppl back to work quickly calling meetings etc.... not known them to withhold CSP often though. Plus if my line manger did withhold CSP pay then surely she should have arranged for SSP to be paid. I had a fit note right up until I returned. I realise the policy may say up to 6 weeks reduced hours, but my complaint is some get it and others don't. It's inconsistent.

No, that isn't inconsistent. The range of variation is to allow for different circumstances. What someone else gets shouldn't be an indicator of anything. But your manager shouldn't need to arrange anything. She simply submits the information to payroll and they should automatically pay SSP. You don't apply for it, but neither does the manager. That would, as far as I can see, only apply for company sick pay that is discretionary.

It is the case though, and you need to understand this, that you didn't have a right to refuse to attend the meetings. It's not common - but it happens often enough - but the fit note says that you aren't fit for your normal duties. Not that you aren't fit to attend meetings. It more usually comes up around disciplinary events rather than sickness, but if you aren't fit to engage with the employer at all, that is what the doctor should be saying. If they haven't said that, refusing to attend the meetings wasn't your call.