Some Legal Background on the Sick Leave Act!

The Sick Leave Act, 2022 provides for a statutory sick pay scheme for all employees. 

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Employees must have completed 13 weeks’ continuous service with the employer before availing of statutory sick leave.  

The employee must provide their employer with a medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner and the certificate must state that the employee named is unfit to work due to their illness or injury. 

The entitlement is triggered by the employee’s first statutory sick leave day.  

The leave must be in relation to a day or days when an employee would ordinarily work but is incapable of doing so due to illness or injury.

The leave can be taken on consecutive or non-consecutive days.

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For 2023 the entitlement was 3 days' sick pay a year.

From 1 January 2024 all employees have a right to 5 days’ sick pay a year. This is called statutory sick pay (that means the legal minimum).

Sick pay is paid by your employer at 70% of your normal pay up to a maximum of €110 a day.

You must be an employee and be working at least 13 weeks with your employer before you can get statutory sick pay.

Your employer can have a more generous sick pay scheme, but they can't give you less than the statutory amount.

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