Sickness and Sick Pay Policy Writers

What are Sickness and Sick Pay Policies?

Sickness and sick pay policies outline how employees should report absence due to illness and explain what financial support they may be entitled to during periods of sickness.

These HR policies help ensure that absence is managed fairly and consistently, while keeping the organisation compliant with UK employment and statutory sick pay legislation.

From 6 April 2026, SSP is payable from day one with no waiting period and no lower earnings limit. See our day-one SSP April 2026 employer guide for the full set of changes and what to update.

What Do Sickness and Sick Pay Policies Cover?

A sickness policy typically includes:

How to report sickness absence and by when
When a fit note or medical certificate is required
Entitlement to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) or company sick pay
Evidence and self-certification requirements
Monitoring of absence levels and return-to-work interviews
Long-term absence procedures
Support options such as occupational health referrals

A clear policy helps employees understand their rights and responsibilities when they are unwell, while giving managers the tools to handle absence in a structured and supportive way.

It also reduces the risk of inconsistency, confusion or perceived unfairness, which can lead to grievances or reduced morale.

Well-communicated sick pay policies can also encourage early conversations about health issues and enable employers to offer timely support, whether through phased returns, adjustments at work or external health services.

This proactive approach can reduce long-term absence and support staff wellbeing.

Legal Basis

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is governed by the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 and the Statutory Sick Pay (General) Regulations 1982.

The Employment Rights Bill proposes two material changes to SSP that employers should anticipate: removal of the three-day waiting period (so SSP becomes payable from day one of incapacity), and removal of the lower earnings limit so all employees are eligible regardless of pay.

Royal Assent and commencement dates are still to be confirmed but are expected during 2026.

The Equality Act 2010 protects disabled employees, including those with long-term fluctuating health conditions, against unfavourable treatment because of something arising in consequence of their disability, frequently engaged in absence-management cases.

The Access to Work scheme remains the primary route to fund workplace adjustments.

Common Compliance Pitfalls

Trigger-point absence procedures applied without disability filtering. A blanket Bradford Factor or trigger system that disregards disability-related absence is the single most common Equality Act claim in this area.
SSP underpaid for irregular workers. The earnings calculation for SSP uses an 8-week reference period; commission, overtime and zero-hours patterns are often missed.
Self-certification and fit-note rules confused. Self-certify for the first 7 days; fit notes from day 8. From July 2022, fit notes can be issued by nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists and physiotherapists, not only GPs.
Long-term sickness without OH input. Procedures that progress to dismissal without an Occupational Health report are highly vulnerable to unfair-dismissal and disability-discrimination challenge.
Permanent Health Insurance (PHI) interaction. Where the employer holds PHI, dismissal during a PHI claim has been held repeatedly to breach the implied term of trust and confidence.

Sector-Specific Considerations

Healthcare and emergency services: Higher absence rates are normal; policies should reflect agreed sector benchmarks rather than office norms.

Construction and manual sectors: Return-to-work risk assessments and phased-return guidance should sit inside the procedure, not be left to ad-hoc decisions.

Public-sector tenders: Wellbeing and absence-management strategies are scored under social value Theme 5.

What Policy Pros Delivers

Our Sickness and Sick Pay Policy package includes the main policy, an absence-management procedure, a return-to-work interview template, a long-term-absence procedure with OH referral letter templates, a phased-return agreement template, and a manager briefing on the Employment Rights Bill changes.

The policy is drafted to be Equality Act-defensible and to integrate with capability, disciplinary and reasonable-adjustments procedures.