Sick pay rules pushed out from January

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Samantha McCaughren Business Editor

December 19 2021 02:30 AM

The Government’s plan to introduce statutory sick pay in January has been delayed.

Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) has raised concerns over the timeline for the new sick pay requirements and has written a number of letters to Tanaiste Leo Varadkar and the Department of Enterprise.

However, his office has recently written to the body to outline a delay to the new requirements coming into force.

The letter said: “Any move to introduce a statutory sick pay scheme must be balanced with the need to support the viability of the business and enterprise sector, therefore protecting jobs.”

It said examination of the implications of the scheme and consultations with stakeholders was therefore essential.

It was not the intention to place an additional burden on companies.

The letter added it was unlikely the legislative process would be completed by January but it would be enacted later in the year.

CAI’s public policy lead Crona Clohisey previously said companies needed time to bring in new sick pay processes.

Following on from the department’s update last week, Clohisey wrote: “In light of this delay and the fact that the Government made a commitment in June to introduce a statutory sick pay scheme from 1 January 2022, we recommend that a formal communication be issued by the Department before the end of this year to alert workers, employers, payroll service providers and other stakeholders to the postponement.”