New SSP rules

Evelina69

Ref New SSP rules from April
Are there legal requirements for employees to have to get a sick note if they are off for a couple of days? 

Can an employee just ring up on a Monday, after heavy weekend, and say they are not feeling well.
Are they entitled to sick pay?

Jackie1813

I don't think you are due it for the first  three days.

Evelina69

Jackie1813 said:

I don't think you are due it for the first  three days.

Not from April

chrisbur

Have not yet read the full details but would assume that the first week or part week can still be self certified.

Undervalued

Evelina69 said:

Ref New SSP rules from April
Are there legal requirements for employees to have to get a sick note if they are off for a couple of days? 

Can an employee just ring up on a Monday, after heavy weekend, and say they are not feeling well.
Are they entitled to sick pay?

If the employer had evidence that this was the real reason they would have good grounds to withhold any sick pay and / or take disciplinary action!

EnPointe

Jackie1813 said:

I don't think you are due it for the first  three days.

this is the main change  that  SSP  will be payable from day 1 of absence  rather than day 4  as well as widening who is entitled to SSP 

EnPointe

Undervalued said:

Evelina69 said:

Ref New SSP rules from April
Are there legal requirements for employees to have to get a sick note if they are off for a couple of days? 

Can an employee just ring up on a Monday, after heavy weekend, and say they are not feeling well.
Are they entitled to sick pay?

If the employer had evidence that this was the real reason they would have good grounds to withhold any sick pay and / or take disciplinary action!

you use your attendance management process  

the first time someone is off sickness, you do a return for  work  with them on their return , remind them of the  criteria in your policy and carry on 

ditto the  second time within  whatever time frame  you  set in your policy ( often  rolling 6 months ) 

third time -it's often a formal stage 1  attendance review and you  issue a Stage 1  attendance review , and point out that any further absence in the time  frame set in the policy will lead to a Stage 2 absence review ...  you can of course mititgate a stage 1 or stage 2 absence  and have  different  criteria for short term and long termin absence , ( long term absence usually being  very coroborateable  by  Doctor's notes, hospital admissions, your employee  being in  cast  / on crutches / having an Eff off great  operative scar ...  )

if you  get to the next step and there is a clear pattern of absence  ( repeated short absences unsupported by  Doctor's notes,   you  really ought to consider an Occupational health review if you haven't done  so yet  , this is also where have a good substance misuse policy comes into it's own  even if your  workplace is a 'low risk' one from the point of  machinery, tools, vehiclers etc )  this is where the final attendance / capability warning comes in  and the very  real  likelihood that if someone doesn't buck their ideas up their  next professional move will be to explore the options in dept P45 

TELLIT01

If the employer has genuine cause to believe the employer is not actually sick they can withhold SSP.

mlz1413

Good question. 

SSP is a small amount of money, but better than unpaid. 

If someone only has to do an online self cert then lots of odd days off could become frustrating for an employer. 

Enpointe gives a great breakdown of how the employer will need to act, but I can see small businesses not documenting the first few times and then realising the pattern.

If companies can ask for a signed doctors/professional sick note (or Fit Note) the financial gain would be minimal as chemist's charge £20 and SSP is about the same.

TELLIT01

At the last place I worked, 3 absences would initial the attendance management process.  SSP is paid by the employer so this will just add to the workload and overheads for companies.  Just one more example of how business is being hammered now.

EnPointe

TELLIT01 said:

At the last place I worked, 3 absences would initial the attendance management process.  SSP is paid by the employer so this will just add to the workload and overheads for companies.  Just one more example of how business is being hammered now.

funny how many businesses even in the private sector manage to have  Occupational sick pay schemes of whatever nature isn't it.  Altohugh it's extremely  poor practice to have  different schemes for  The hourly paid Peons and  for 'Staff' 

having an attedance policy  with clear criteria  ( and clear grounds for  mitigating stages)   is the first step in  dealing  with this ia firm but fair manner... 

What you also need to be clear is that being a Stage 1 or Stage 2 Sickness  review is  not a disciplinary  and  it t may even be  pertinent  to  have a  statement that being a  stage 1  sickness  is  not a grounds to disqualify peopel from moving roles  laterally by  mutual agreement and not a barrier  to promotion ( even if it  does  feature in the scoring matrix for their  making such decisions  and someone  who scores equally  well in every other  section is going to get the promotion ahead of someone on a Stage)  . 

a lot of people  get paranoid aobut being on any Stage  of attendance process in trerms of  moving roles / getting promoted 

if you have good evidence that people are taking the !!!!!! you  go down a disciplinary route of AWOL, but you have to  be prepared for Curve balls like substance misuse stuff