Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to provide targeted support for small employers to help meet the cost of day-one Statutory Sick Pay.

Strengthening Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is part of the Government’s Plan to Make Work Pay ensuring the safety net of sick pay is available to those who need it most. The Government believes that removing the waiting period is essential to ensure employees feel better able to take the time they need to recover from short term illness, without struggling in work and often spreading infectious diseases such as influenza.

The government conducted a Regulatory Impact Assessment on the changes to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay in the Employment Rights Bill, which was published on 21 October 2024. This includes the impacts on small businesses. The additional cost to business of the SSP reforms is around £15 per employee. The government intends to conduct a post-implementation review of the Employment Rights Bill within five years of implementation.

Previous SSP rebate schemes that were available to employers, such as the Percentage Threshold Scheme were seen as complex, expensive to administer, underused by small businesses and did not encourage employers to support their employees during sickness absence.

The Department for Business and Trade provides a range of offers that SMEs may wish to access.  They include the Business Support Service, Gov.uk, the network of 41 local Growth Hubs across England, and the Help to Grow: Management scheme to help improve leadership and management capabilities. The recently launched Business Growth Service (BGS) makes it easier for businesses across the UK to get the advice and support they need to grow and thrive.