Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Sick Leave Act 2022 came into effect on 1 of January 2023 providing up to 3 days of employer-paid sick leave in that year, paid at 70% of gross salary up to a cap of €110 per day. The minimum number of days provided for under the Act increased to 5 days on 1 January 2024.

Section 9(1) provides that the obligations under the Act do not apply to employers who offer, on the whole, benefits which are more favourable to the employee than the statutory sick leave scheme. The factors to be considered when deciding if an employers scheme is more favourable are laid out in section 9(2) of the Act and include: the period of service required to access the employer scheme, any waiting days applied before sick leave is payable, the period for which sick leave is payable, the amount of sick leave that is payable and the reference period for the employer scheme.

Employers that do offer their own sick leave schemes are strongly encouraged to examine the terms of their scheme carefully, considering the factors laid out in section 9(2) of the Act. If an employee believes that their employer scheme is not equal to or more beneficial than the statutory sick leave scheme, then I would encourage them to make a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission for adjudication or mediation. The operation of the Act is kept under review.

Illness Benefit is a matter for the Minister for Social Protection. Amendments to the Illness Benefit and Injury Benefit provisions in the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, which came into effect on 1 January 2024, provide that these benefits are not payable for any day where there is an entitlement to statutory sick leave. The Department of Social Protection treats employees eligible for statutory sick leave and employees covered by the more favourable company arrangements the same in terms of the effect on their Illness Benefit and Injury Benefit entitlements. In 2024 Illness Benefit and Injury Benefit is generally paid from day 6 of the claim.

Days 1-3 are covered by both Illness Benefit/Injury Benefit ‘waiting days’ and the first 3 statutory sick leave days (or equivalent recognition of the more favourable employer scheme). Days 4 and 5 are covered by the remainder of the 5 days statutory sick leave (or equivalent recognition of the more favourable employer scheme). However, should a person exhaust their allocation of 5 days' sick leave in a calendar year and apply again for Illness Benefit or Injury Benefit within the same year they will be paid Illness Benefit or Injury Benefit from day 4 (having served the 3 waiting days).