To think 10 days paid sick leave a year is not very much?

[patandjess]

I’ve been offered a job that gives 10 days paid sick leave a year, then after that you’re on statutory sick pay (£109 a week as far as I can tell).

It’s a senior role in a creative industry.

Is this usual? I’ve been self-employed for a long time so forgive my ignorance. What happens if someone gets a serious illness or is signed off with e.g. stress? Do they have to live on £109 a week?

I had Covid at the beginning of the year and was ill for over a week, so that would have been about 6 days. Then a few other illnesses dotted throughout the year and there goes your 10 days.

Curious to know what other workplaces offer and whether this is usual or not.

10 days should be plenty unless you're a massive piss taker or have a serious illness. I've never taken even half that amount of leave in a year.

Taking more than a week for covid is taking the piss imo.

I took 3 weeks for covid. Anti virals, unwell and under the covid at home team. Not taking the piss

In my previous role, I got two paid sick days per year. TWO! I was senior and had been there years. I’d stash annual leave days as a precaution if I had any illnesses so I’d not be out of pocket if I needed more time off sick

I’ve always worked in the NHS so it starts at 1 month full pay and 1 month half pay. It then increases yearly, to a maximum of 6 months full pay and 6 months half pay. I couldn’t imagine working somewhere with such a crap sick policy! If you’re office based then it must encourage people to come in and spread around colds, leading to more people being off.

Very unusual for a creative industry - I work in music and we have 60 paid sick days a year. We don't have people use them as sick days, because we also get 33 days off a year annual leave.

I just checked and management will at discretion pay up to 26 weeks sick leave a year which I assume covers for serious illness such as cancer. I am due to have quite a big op which has a a 6-8 week recovery and I have no doubt that this will be fully paid.

We have low turnover and lots of long serving staff members. I think it speaks massively about how much they care about employee welfare.

That being said, my mum gets zero but also works for a shit company in a manufacturing industry so not surprised. I am surprised a creative job only pays 10 days.

I'm allowed two days a term
Then it's statutory sick pay of just over £100 a month
My husband does not get any ...straight to statutory sick pay

It's an interesting discussion.
I work in IT and was looking into contracting - contractors get paid at least double the hourly rate of permanent staff. More than enough to save up for sick pay/purchase income protection policies, pay into a private pension, etc. The other thing being - contractors can bill for exact hours worked, unlike permanent staff.

The downside is that you always need to be on the lookout for work but again, the good ones have a reputation so it's not really a problem.

However, contracts are very susceptible to the state of the economy and the market's currently not great.

I'm guessing OP yours is similar? Being freelance for a long time did you not build sick pay etc into your rates? Did you just spend everything you earned with no buffer?

Seems ok to me, surely most people aren't sick for two weeks every year?
Saying that, I think I'd be inclined to look into some sort of private insurace in case you break your leg/get a serious illness.

10 days more than either my husband or I used to get

Yes, of course. I built it into my rates.

Mad how different it is. First job at 20 at a call centre was 6 months full pay, 6 months half. People used to get signed off with depression for a break

I believe I get 20 days but haven’t had a sick day for 7 years. There are a few people in the office who are always “sick” usually on a Monday 🙄. Would be nice to get some of those days back!

Agree. How can anyone say it’s taking the piss to take more than a week off for covid? What a silly comment. How we learned nothing from this pandemic??

Some people have covid and don’t even know it and some like my friend - 40, fit, healthy - were hospitalised and others get long covid and then some even die From it.

Covid and flu and viruses in general aren’t always few days of sniffles and coughing.

This.

It’s sad how so many are brainwashed little worker bees. Or they are badly lacking in imagination to figure or why you might need 10 days off.

Even if you ignore the existence of covid - the flu, pneumonia and other viral infections have always been fairly common ailments which often take people out for at least 1-2 weeks. (At age 25, I had pneumonia for 3. weeks and could barely walk). Then you might need to take a few more days off for a bad cold later on in the year, a day or two off for migraine/headache or really bad period cramp or upset stomach and that’s 15 sick days easily. It’s also quite ableist because it doesn’t consider the many who have things like PCOS, asthma, stomach/digestive related conditions etc.

part of the reason why companies get away with such nonsense of 10 days sick day is because there’s so many dim witted folk keen to bootlick who spout nonsense about anyone who needs more time off than a couple of weeks is a piss taker. This thread is proof of that.

So that means you do get things like sick pay and A/L. It's just factored into your rates as opposed to a separate category made by your employer.

Of course, if say you were sick for 3 weeks and didn't get paid , and didn't have a lot of work that year you might not have the buffer, while a permanent employee might still get paid.

To answer the actual question I think normality depends on industry. What PP post here isn't really relevant as it may not apply to yours.

Personally I've never seen such a strict policy (tech) 10 days and straight to SSP there's usually an element of management discretion. Nor have I been expected to use A/L for medical appointments - but of course it depends on how long it takes - I can leave early EOD or block a couple of hours out and make it up later but not more than that.

Have you still got contacts in the same industry you can ask?

I’m in financial services in private sector. Sick pay starts at 3 months full, 1 month 75%, 1 month 50% and then builds up every year till it gets to 1 year full pay, 6 months 75% & 6 months 50%. I’m rarely off and when I am usually make up the time. It’s typical of everyone I work with

I think things are further complicated by menopause. One of the things that bothers me is that I am perimenopausal and, while it is generally under control thanks to HRT, I do have more days than most when I feel generally unwell. A few of these a year would eat into those 10 days.

Is failing to support menopause at work discrimination?

@patandjess Is failing to support menopause at work discrimination?

Not offering additional paid time off for menopause that is also unavailable for other conditions or illnesses is not discrimination.