New job only offering SSP

[Lyns18]

I have been offered a new job. The reason I applied was the hours were better and it's alternate Saturdays as opposed to every Saturday. I got the job offer letter but they only offer SSP. My current job is 90% pay for 6 weeks and then 50% for 6 weeks but no pay for first 3 days. I am a healthcare professional. My current job is with a larger company and the new job with a smaller business although they have gone into Partnership with a larger group recently. Is this the norm now to be offered SSP? AiBU to expect a better sick pay package as a professional? I have a mortgage and two kids. We have critical illness cover with our mortgage but this would only cover more substantial illness I think. It's the real sticking point for me.

This comes across as very rude.
You did read that the time she was off she lost her husband?
Well done you if you have a fund to cover 3 months but at the minute people are struggling to pay their bills

My work changed to that for the probation period as there went through a period (pre covid) when a few took the piss and had lots of one off sick days soon after starting. Unfortunately it’s a case of a few ruining it for the many

Luckily I get full pay from day one. In the middle of cancer treatment and although I've managed to work, I'm working 50% of my usual hours, getting SSP would add unnecessary stress to an already stressful situation and I'm the breadwinner.

You always think it won't happen to you but sometimes it does. No way would I take a job paying SSP.

We only do SSP because we got bloody sick of people taking the piss. We're a small business and just can't afford it and it makes for a bad office environment when other employees and ourselves know someone is abusing sick pay to get free holidays or not coming in because they were out on the piss last night.

Agree OP it is shocking to know that an accident,illness could effectively put you out on the streets after a couple of months SSP !
A few examples that I can offer .
1 I fell over shoppingand broke my arm requiring surgery ,off for three months . My income dropped from £1500 ( I work part time ) to £400 for three months …imagine if I was relying on my pay to pay mortgage,rent etc
2 Work colleague came to work a few years ago with obvious chest infection ( she couldn’t afford to go off sick ) tragically she died suddenly from sepsis day after doing a 12 hr shift !
3 Another work colleague is finally getting an op next week that will put her off sick for six weeks minimum…she is so worried about her drop in income from £3000 per month to £400 .
I can think of numerous other examples but these are the three that spring to mind ,absolutely shocking ant to the pp who suggests people should have a reserve fund for these eventualities…well guess what many people do not earn enough to save for a JIC fund !

Unfortunately many employers only offer SSP. And being "a professional" doesn't make any difference to that. Lots of people have mortgages and two children to support and only get SSP. Much as I think SSP is entirely inadequate, so I agree with you on that point, it is what probably the majority of the population have to live with, and I don't think that being a "professional" or having a family to support is a relevant argument. People who aren't "professional" deserve better too.

Don’t do it.
I was someone who had never had a day off in twenty years. Sudden serious illness needing multiple operations and several long sick absences. To be honest on ssp we would have lost our home and standard of living.
my employer, private, stood by me. My children, going through enough trauma, stayed in their own home and school.

I've worked in public and private sector roles and sickness was rife in both. The only difference was the level of sick pay
No sick pay didn't deter sickness absence in the corporate company I worked for.

I work for a LA who only did SSP for the first 5 months - tbh I was shocked. Plus with all this crap about sicklines.

id only ever had a “proper job” overseas before where if I said I was sick, I was sick - end of story. If you were off more than six weeks then the company doctor would do a home visit.

I feel like a child asking for a sick note.

cruel twist of fate - I got very Ill literally the week I became eligible for full sick-pay, so it’s made me feel guilty and “scammy” even though it’s legitimate.

The attitude towards sickness needs a comprehensive overhaul imo.

I'm guessing that this is a GP surgery? They are a private business (contracted to provide NHS services), could you negotiate?

OMG, this is just one of the reasons why I am glad I'm back in Australia. We accrue 10 sick leave days over the course of a year, and it rolls over to the next year if unused. In my company from our 3rd year of employment we accrue 12 days a year. This can be used as either sick leave or carer's leave.

It’s not uncommon at all sadly.

Have you looked at income protection? It’s usually alongside CIC.

You may be surprised as to what you can get.

Then you need to manage your sickness absence properly.

I work in school. Sometimes it can be a real problem, but it's actually really easy to get a grip of if you just follow the processes properly. I've turned it around within a term at 3 schools now. If you constantly do RTW meeting etc, absence improves quickly and you support the staff who need it properly.

Management failings aren't justification for leaving sick staff on the breadline.

Jesus do YOU want a round of applause? What a bitchy comment. So well done you, having 3 months pay sitting in your bank account, you do realise that most people don't have that? Her husband died too, did you miss that comment while you were gloating? Hope you're having an off day and not usually this nasty.

Wow - she was off sick due to her husband’s death . Do you have no empathy at all?

Ssp only was common in our small business.
Couldn't have afforded it otherwise

I can understand your dilemma and to be honest i would find it difficult in which job to pick.

I have been in my job for 11 months and have just had 8 weeks off sick due to my Dad dying. I received full pay and I work for a relatively small organisation. In comparison, my sister has been in her job for 11 years, works for a small business that do however make a lot of money and they paid her SSP. She also has a mortgage and is really struggeling financially both last month and this month.

If I had of been paid SSP I would of seriously struggled these past few weeks.

It would massively put me off. Not just of itself, but in that it speaks volumes about how they value and support their staff. I also wouldn't want to work in a situation where people are dragging themselves in when ill and passing it on to everyone else because they can't manage the loss of income of a couple of days off.

Are you an optician, OP?

Sounds very much like my experience. I worked for a large multiple for a long time and was used to getting full sick pay.

Since then I have worked for two different independent practices and I was quite shocked that both only offered SSP. I actually didn’t realise until I’d been there 5 years at one of them! Fortunately it wasn’t an issue that came up until Covid anyway.

It is one of the big reasons I decided to go back to working for a big company again though - it just feels more secure really should anything happen in the future.

I’m guessing they are not looking to attract people who think they will need generous sick pay ie people who are often either off sick (genuinely) or “off sick”.

IME people who don't often go sick (like me) are often the most aware of what can go wrong if you are struck by something serious and therefore more likely to make employment decisions based on security of pay. People who are "what the hell" over taking sick leave will be the same in other aspects of their life/work.

Sorry to hear about your husband. Sorry about the poster who was very rude to you also.

I need to check in more detail what cover exactly we have. I know we have the CIC but but not 100% about income protection. Thank you.

Yes that's exactly it. I'm not off sick often and that's not the reason I am worried but I am a very sensible person who thinks about the future and no one knows what may lie ahead. I think you are spot on @Explaintome

@CliffordMystery Yes I am! I really like the new practice and have been keen to get into independent practice for some time but they don't seem to have the same 'perks'. I kind of thought sick pay was a normal part of terms though. I have been in my current job for 20 years so don't really know how things work elsewhere! I am also going to lose my private healthcare and a week holiday.