Workers on farms are now entitled to sick pay

FARMERS and agricultural contractors who regularly employ people have been advised to make plans for changes to employees’ entitlement to ‘sick pay’, set to be introduced later this year.

There will be a legal requirement on employers to provide paid sick leave for workers for three days per annum in 2022 and 2023, rising to five days in 2024, seven days in 2025 and 10 days in 2026. The days do not have to be consecutive.

The Draft Sick Leave Bill, now published by the Dept. of Social Protection, will mean that employers ‘will pick up the tab’ for a 70% payment of normal wages during this designated period of sick pay, up to a maximum of €110 per day.

According to Citizens Information, for employees to be entitled to be paid sick leave, they must have worked with their employer for at least 13 weeks and they must be certified by a GP as being unfit for work.

“Employees’ Sick Pay entitlement starts as soon as the law is enacted. This is expected soon,” according to the Citizens’ Information website.

Ifac, the agribusiness professional services firm, said this week that it would be particularly important for farmers and contractors to make provision in their budgets for the statutory sick pay legal requirement.

Mary McDonagh, Head of Payroll Services at Ifac, said that this year’s introduction of statutory sick pay was an additional cost that affected farmers needed to budget for.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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