Senior associate Victoria Eustace, in our Employment Law team, highlights the changes to Statutory Sick Pay coming soon.
What are the changes?
Under the Employment Rights Act 2025, which received Royal Assent in December 2025, changes to the Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) regime are currently due to come into force in April 2026. In summary, these changes will include:
- Employees will be entitled to SSP from the first qualifying day of sickness absence, removing the three ‘waiting days’ currently in place.
- The lower earnings limit will be removed so that all employees may access SSP, regardless of earnings. Employees will be entitled to the lower of:
- the weekly prescribed amount (currently £118.75 but increasing to £123.25 in April 2026) or
- 80% of their average weekly earnings.
The new 80% average earnings entitlement would result in a reduction in SSP due to those employees earning between £125 and £154.05 a week. There are transitional provisions in place to ensure that there is no reduction in SSP for employees already absent as at the commencement date whose earnings level would otherwise result in payment of less than the flat rate.
Considerations for employers
The overall cost of SSP to employers is likely to increase as a result of the new provisions. Employers should take steps now to ensure they are prepared before the changes come into force. Employers should consider:
- Reviewing sickness absence policies and procedures and updating where necessary to reflect the new rights and to ensure robust absence management.
- Auditing sickness absence, particularly identifying employees likely to be absent and in receipt of SSP at implementation.
- Updating payroll to reflect the new entitlements.
- Ensuring employees are informed as necessary.
Our Employment Law team advises employees and employers in relation to employees' rights, policies and procedures.
For further information or legal advice, please contact law@blandy.co.uk or call 0118 951 6800.
This article is intended for the use of clients and other interested parties. The information contained in it is believed to be correct at the date of publication, but it is necessarily of a brief and general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for specific professional advice.
