Statutory Sick Pay reform fact sheet: What you need to know and why

As of April 6, 2026 the UK government has implemented reforms to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) under the Employments Right Act 2025. 

What is Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)? 

• In the UK, statutory sick pay is the legal minimum amount employers must pay eligible employees when they are too unwell to work.

• It is paid for 28 weeks. 

• To be eligible for SSP, an individual must be classed as an employee

• Agency workers have a range of working relationships and can be classified as employed earners and can therefore be eligible for SSP

• Some organisations have an occupational sick pay offering that is paid at a higher rate or for a longer period of time than SSP. Other organisations combine an occupational sick pay scheme that flows on to SSP within 28 weeks.

What are the key SSP reforms? 

• SSP is now a “day one” entitlement for all employees 

• Eligibility has been extended to lower paid workers 

• The SSP rate has increased to the lower of £123.25/ week or 80% of an individual’s weekly earnings

What was different before this change?

• An individual taking sickness absence would have to wait until their fourth day of sickness absence before eligibility for SSP

• An individual would have to earn a minimum of £125/ week to be eligible for SSP

• The SSP rate was £118.75 per week 

What is the anticipated impact on employers?

• Employers will likely see a rise in their costs, as more employees are eligible for SSP, employees are eligible for SSP earlier and are paid a higher rate

What does this SSP reform mean in practice?

Employees off sick is never good for employers. Sickness absence leaves a workforce gap and can be disruptive to the wider team and organisational workflow. 

This reform makes employers more financially invested in the health of their workforce. Even a single day of sickness absence comes at a cost to an employer, beyond the cost of the working time lost and organisational disruption. 

Employers need to think pragmatically about adhering to the new legislation while investing in infrastructure to prevent even that first day of sickness absence. 

Think about your sick pay processes 

Contracts, policies and even absence management and payroll software will need to be updated in order to be legally compliant with these reforms

Think about strategy beyond compliance 

Workforce ill health will cost you more with this change in legislation. Think about pivoting that spend to investment that stops sickness absence happening in the first place, or prevents sickness absence spiralling once it occurs. 

These changes mean employers need to be more engaged with the occupational health of their workforce. A practical framework for action includes:

1- Prevention 

Create working conditions that reduce risk and reduce the likelihood of ill health. This will vary according to the risks of each organisation. For example, in an office setting, staff should have adequate ergonomic set ups at both their on site and remote workstation if applicable. 

2- Early detection 

Encourage employees and managers to act before absence occurs. For example, a manager might speak to an employee when they notice a behaviour change that in fact relates to a relapse in underlying anxiety. 

3- Early intervention 

As soon as an issue at the work-health interface is identified, act. Ideally this will be before sickness absence is even required, but at the very least employers should use day one of sickness absence as a trigger to offer intervention.

4- Expert support

Employers cannot and should not be expected to support the full range of employee health issues alone. This relates to employees often wanting to keep their health information confidential from employers, and for many employers, limited clinical expertise. Seeking professional help from occupational health early addresses these issues. 

A note on presenteeism and absenteeism

Presenteeism is when individuals show up to work when they are not well enough. 

Absenteeism is when individuals take sickness absence unnecessarily. 

Neither are good for the employee and both reduce productivity and increase an employer’s long term costs.

SSP legislation certainly plays a role in setting out duties and expectations between employees and employers around sickness absence. However, organisations are arguably much more powerful in establishing the resources, policies and culture required to keep both absenteeism and presenteeism to a minimum in their own settings. SSP reforms have just increased the cost of doing nothing. Remember- occupational health expertise can be deployed beyond individual cases to help establish systems and processes that support organisational work and health. 

Need Support Navigating SSP Reform?

The recent SSP reforms make early intervention more important than ever. Taking action at the first signs of a work-related health issue can help reduce absence, support employee wellbeing and minimise long-term costs to your organisation.

Our team can help you put practical occupational health strategies in place, from absence management support and referrals to proactive wellbeing and return-to-work solutions.

To discuss how Insight Workplace Health can support your business, visit our contact page or call us on 01792 321010.