Although time off in the UK has become widespread, access to it is unequal.

In our latest policy briefing – Time Off – we investigated whether current time-off policies are sufficient to support an older and sicker workforce stay-in work.

Our analysis shows more than one million UK workers (1.15 million) are not eligible for Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) as they do not meet the weekly earnings threshold of £123.

Ineligibility disproportionately impacts groups already facing structural inequalities in the labour market – nearly two thirds are women (69.2%), a third are disabled workers (33%), and over half are young workers aged 16-24 (52.4%).

This is compounded by the number of businesses who only offer the statutory minimum level of sick pay of £116.75, which is often below normal pay levels.

Workers are sacrificing their health to pay the bills

Alina Toma, 40, has a chronic medical condition which at times means she’s simply unable to work.

And yet because the amount of money Alina receives as sick pay is significantly lower than her pay, she continues to work so that she can simply pay her bills.

She’s left sacrificing her health in order to be able to keep a roof over her head. She is just one example of more than one million UK workers in a similar situation, facing the same difficulties and left constantly worrying.

“Even at this point in time, I can’t afford to take a week off sick because I have to pay my bills,” Alina told Channel 5 News.

“My budget is strict, my earnings the same. If I don’t work a week, who’s going to pay my rent and bills?

“You have to manage two concerns at the time – your health and your financial health.”

Many businesses unable to offer more

Although many businesses have acknowledged the financial impact SSP has on employees, many say they are unable to offer more.

In a new survey of more than 1,000 senior business leaders across Great Britain, commissioned by the Work Foundation, nearly half (47%) say they do not provide more than the statutory minimum level of pay – which currently replaces just 17% of a worker’s average weekly earnings.

Two in five senior business leaders (43%) say financial constraints are preventing their organisation from providing enhanced sick pay, while other list challenges including compliance with legal requirements (31%), perceived impact on staffing levels (31%) and administrative burden and complexity (28%).

“There is recognition across businesses in the UK of the value of Statutory Sick Pay and its importance, but only around half are paying more than the statutory minimum as part of their sick pay policies and a good number of them cite financial constraints as to why they can’t offer more generous sick pay arrangements,” our Director, Ben Harrison told Channel 5 news.

Urgent need for significant reform

A record 2.83 million people are currently economically inactive in the UK due to long-term sickness.

With Health Foundation forecasts suggesting more workers will have major illnesses by 2040, these issues must be addressed. It is vital that action is taken now to address the barriers that prevent many from accessing time off across their lifetime, which can help to keep them in sustained employment. And with a new Government now at the helm, it provides a renewed opportunity for reform.

In order to help boost and sustain levels of labour market participation in the future, we call on the new UK Government to:

• Strengthen statutory leave policies through a comprehensive Employment Bill within the first 100 days in office – including reform Statutory Sick Pay to remove lower earnings limit, enabling SSP to start on day of illness and creating a roadmap for increasing SSP to 60% of usual wages or the equivalent of Real Living Wage
• Commission an Independent Review on Statutory Leave and Pay to establish the fairness, flexibility, and suitability of leave for the future labour market as the pension age rises.

To read the report, please see: Time off: Redesigning leave policies to support longer, healthier working lives.

Related Blogs

• 

  General Election 2024: Seven things we have learned from the parties’ manifestos

• 

  Work Foundation sets out key tests ahead of the King’s Speech

• 

  What we have learned about women’s experiences of insecure work

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed by our bloggers and those providing comments are personal, and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of Lancaster University. Responsibility for the accuracy of any of the information contained within blog posts belongs to the blogger.