Sick leave and sick pay

Since 1 January 2024, you have a right to 5 days’ sick pay a year (increased from 3 days in 2023). This is called statutory sick pay (that means the legal minimum). Sick pay is paid by your employer at 70% of your normal pay up to a maximum of €110 a day.

You must be an employee and be working at least 13 weeks with your employer before you can get statutory sick pay.

Your employer can have a more generous sick pay scheme, but they can't give you less than the statutory amount.

The Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is the legal minimum sick pay.

The entitlement to paid sick leave is expected to be phased in as follows:

• 2024 - 5 days covered
• 2025 - 7 days covered
• 2026 - 10 days covered

The Government is currently reviewing ESRI research on the impact of statutory sick leave before deciding on any further increases for 2025 and 2026.

Sick days can be taken as consecutive days or non-consecutive days.

The sick pay year is the calendar year, so it runs from 1 January to 31 December.

You can get sick pay of 70% of your normal weekly pay, up to a maximum €110 a day – see more about how your sick pay is calculated below.

The rules on the SSP are set out in the Sick Leave Act 2022. The entitlement to sick pay started on 1 January 2023.

To qualify for statutory sick pay you must:

• Be an employee
• Have worked for your employer for at least 13 continuous weeks before you are sick
• Be certified by a medical practitioner as unable to work

You can get sick pay if you are:

• On probation
• Undergoing training (interns)
• An apprentice
• An agency worker

Can part-time workers get 5 days?

Yes, both full-time and part-time employees can take 5 days paid sick leave.

If I have more than one job

If you have multiple employers, you can get 5 days of paid sick leave from each employer, once you have 13 weeks of service with that employer before you are sick.

Length of service

To qualify for statutory sick pay, you need to have worked continuously for your employer for at least 13 weeks.

If you leave your job and return to the same employer within 26 weeks, this gap does not count towards the 13-week requirement. It's treated as if you never left, so your service is still counted as continuous.

Under the sick leave legislation, you must be certified by a medical practitioner as unable to work to qualify for statutory sick pay. You should be certified from day 1 of your sick leave.

You have a right to SSP from the first day you are off sick. Your employer cannot apply ‘waiting days’ before you get statutory sick pay.

Your statutory sick leave payment must be paid at your normal daily rate. You are entitled to 70% of your normal pay, up to a maximum €110 a day.

What is normal daily pay?

Your normal daily pay includes any regular bonus or allowance which does not change from week to week (but excludes overtime or commission).

If your pay changes from week to week (for example, because of regular bonus payments or allowance), your sick pay is the average of your pay over the 13 weeks before you are on sick leave.

Remember that sick pay is capped at a maximum of €110 a day.

How is normal daily pay calculated for part-time workers?

If you work part-time, your normal daily pay is based on your work pattern.

If you work:

(a) A set amount of hours (for example, you work 4 hours every work day) at a fixed rate, then you get either €110 or 70% of your normal daily pay – whichever is lower

(b) Variable hours at a fixed rate, then you get either €110 or 70% of what you would have earned on the day you were sick – whichever is lower

If your work pattern does not fit into category (a) or (b) above, then you get the lower amount of either €110 or your average hourly rate. To get your average hourly rate you:

• Divide your total pay over the past 13 weeks by your hours worked
• Multiply this by the hours you were scheduled to work on the day you were sick

Your employer may offer you more generous sick pay arrangements under its own scheme. If so, your sick leave will be dealt with under that scheme.

That scheme must be more favourable, when viewed as a whole, than the statutory sick pay scheme if it is to apply.

Am I eligible for Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) too?

No, you cannot get the SSP on top of the benefits from your employer’s scheme.

If your employer has their own sick pay scheme that offers more generous benefits than SSP, you should be paid under those arrangements. The SSP is for employees who don’t have a company sick pay scheme or don’t qualify for it.

Some sectoral workers may not be covered under the Statutory Sick Pay scheme where a Sectoral Employment Order covers different rates of sick pay.

For example, if you are a construction worker registered with the Construction Workers Pension Scheme, your sick leave will be dealt with under the Sick Pay Benefit of the Construction Workers Sick Pay Trust (CWSPT). This is more favourable than the Statutory Sick Pay scheme.

If you are off work sick for less than 5 days, the unused days can be used for any other sick period, up to a maximum of 5 days in a calendar year.

If you are off work sick for more than 5 days, and you have enough PRSI contributions, you can apply to the Department of Social Protection (DSP) for a payment called Illness Benefit.

Your Illness Benefit starts from day 6.

If you are sick again

If you have already used your 5 days of statutory sick leave in 2024 and you are sick again later in the same year, you can get Illness Benefit from day 4 of your illness (that is after the normal 3 waiting days).

Examples

You can see examples of how sick leave affects illness benefit on gov.ie.

You can also see examples if you are on an employer sick pay scheme that is more favourable than statutory sick leave.

Sick leave within your first 13 weeks of employment

If you are sick within the first 13 weeks of employment, you are not entitled to statutory sick pay. You may still be entitled to Illness Benefit.

If you are off work sick and getting Illness Benefit when the 13-week requirement is met, you cannot use statutory sick days during that period of sick leave.

No. Statutory sick leave can only be used in the calendar year it is due. If you do not use all your statutory sick days, the unused days can not be carried forward to the following year.

Sick leave that continues into a new calendar year

You cannot continue a period of statutory sick leave from one calendar year into the next.

If you are getting Illness Benefit at end of the calendar year, then you cannot use the new year’s statutory sick days during that period of sick leave. You should continue on Illness Benefit in this scenario.

If you are on statutory sick leave at the end of a calendar year, you should move onto illness benefit if you remain unfit to work. However, if you return to work at any time in the following calendar year, you will have full access to your statutory sick leave entitlement for that year.

Your employment rights are protected during sick leave. You are treated as being in employment while you are on sick leave.

What happens if I am off sick during public holidays?

You work full-time

If you work full-time and you are on sick leave during a public holiday, you can get sick pay or Illness Benefit for the public holiday you miss.

Or your employer can treat you as not being on sick leave on the public holiday and pay you as normal for that day. In this case, they will not count the public holiday as a sick leave day.

You work part-time

If you work part-time and you are on sick leave during a public holiday, you are entitled to time off work for the public holiday. You must have worked at least 40 hours over the previous 5 weeks.

Exceptions

You are not entitled to pay or time off for the public holiday if you are on sick leave immediately before the public holiday, and either of the following apply:

• You have been off work for more than 26 weeks due to an ordinary illness or an accident
• You have been off work for more than 52 weeks due to an occupational accident

What happens to my annual leave when I am off sick?

If you are sick during your annual leave and get a medical certificate for those days, they will not be counted as annual leave days. Your employer cannot insist you take annual leave on days you are off sick and have a medical certificate.

You can continue to build up your annual leave entitlement while you are off sick, once you have a medical certificate.

If you are on long-term sick leave and cannot take your annual leave due to illness, you can carry it over for up to 15 months after the end of the year you built it up. If you leave your job within these 15 months, you should get holiday pay instead of the annual leave days you could not take due to illness.

If I take sick leave while on probation

Your employer can suspend your probation, training or apprenticeship for the period you are on sick leave. The days can be added onto the end of your probation, training or apprenticeship period.

If you do not get the sick pay you are due, contact your employer to try to resolve the issue informally first.

If you cannot resolve the issue directly with your employer, you can make a formal complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

How to make a complaint to the WRC

If you have a dispute about sick pay, you can make a formal complaint to the WRC. You should use the online complaint form.

You must make your complaint within 6 months of the dispute. The time limit can be extended for a further 6 months if there is reasonable cause for the delay.

Read more about how to make a complaint, including details of the WRC adjudication process.

You are protected from being victimised or penalised for claiming your rights under sick leave legislation.

This means your employer cannot penalise you by dismissal, unfair treatment or an unfavourable change in your conditions of employment.

If you were penalised, you can take a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

An employer who is experiencing severe financial difficulties can apply to the Labour Court for an exemption to pay statutory sick pay.

If an exemption is granted, it will be for a period of between 3 to 12 months.

The law on sick leave and sick pay is set out in the Sick Leave Act 2022 (as amended), the Commencement Order for the Sick Leave Act 2022 and the Sick Leave Act 2022 (Prescribed daily rate of payment) Regulations 2022.

The WRC also has information on sick leave.

You can read more about accidents in the workplace.