Most think minimum statutory sick pay (SSP) arrangements are inadequate, while election manifestos differ in commitment to change

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A poll of 3,214 voters in Greater London finds that most people think employers’ legal minimum statutory sick pay (SSP) arrangements are inadequate – and want politicians to offer an increase to the estimated one third of workers across London who cannot claim sick pay sufficient to cover essential bills if they are ill or injured.

The poll by Focal Data was commissioned for the Safe Sick Pay campaign, a coalition of organisations and individuals working to reform the UK’s sick pay regime. It found 75% of Londoners polled in early 2024 backed an increase to the weekly amount sick pay is paid whilst 25% opposed such a move. 78% would like to see all employers, regardless of their salary, be eligible to access SSP, whilst 22% were against extending it to the low income earners who currently miss out due to current rules.

Amongst supporters of London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the proportion of people backing an increase to SSP rises to 82% (based on a sample of 833 voters). The policy has support amongst Conservative voters as well, with 69% of 620 voters polled who previously indicated they were backing Susan Hall in the Mayoral Elections confirming they support an increase to SSP.

Whilst the majority of workers, particularly higher earners, get some number of weeks or months of sick pay at a proportion of their salary an estimated 9 million workers, disproportionately those in lower income occupations, currently either get only statutory sick pay, or are not eligible for any sick pay at all.

Charities, churches, mosques, synagogues, community groups and trade union branches across London have joined with Latin American rights organisations to write to hundreds of candidates across the capital asking them to back the ‘Safe Sick Pay’ pledge, to help the poorest working Londoners.

The letter writing campaign comes as the Lib Dems and Greens both made pledges to significantly raise sick pay for the one in three workers in the capital on SSP, whilst Labour committed to scrapping the three unpaid waiting days. Conservative and Labour candidates are being asked where they stand on increasing the weekly amount sick pay is paid at, a key problem for workers.

At a national level, the Liberal Democrats announced that they are backing a sick pay increase in their manifesto. Labour has promised more limited reforms in its new deal for working people scrapping the three unpaid waiting days sick pay and the lower earnings limit at which it is paid at. The Conservatives have resisted changing sick pay, however several Conservative candidates, including two former secretaries of state for work and pensions have backed sick pay improvements personally.

The UK is at the bottom of international league tables, with firms able to pay just a £3 effective rate to a full time employee, even after many years of service, which is less than even a quarter of the London Living Wage rate of £13.15 an hour.

John Burgess, Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON said: “The other day when I was looking at a payslip for one of our cleaners, who took a few days off on statutory sick pay. She got just £23 a day, before tax. Covid may be over, but we are in the worst cost of living crisis in 77 years and it is a scandal that our lowest paid are not provided with full occupational sick pay. I fully support the campaign for full sick pay for all workers, regardless of who they are employed by.”

Bob Padron, founder of social care firm Penrose Care said: “We have run an occupational sick pay scheme since 2013 and, as far as are aware, were the first to do so in social care. I have little doubt at all that one of the reasons we had no Covid-related deaths up to the pandemic ‘Freedom Day’ was because we provide a financial incentive to our home care staff not to come to work when sick – promoting the safety of our staff and our clients.”

Amanda Walters, Director of the Centre for Progressive Change, which coordinates the Safe Sick Pay campaign, said: “The UK’s statutory sick pay system is a hidden scandal that leaves 9 million workers in a perilous situation if they are unlucky enough to have to take time off work. It doesn’t need to be this way – every party should be clear with voters on how they’re going to tackle this injustice, including how much they plan to raise the low weekly amount SSP is paid at.”

The Safe Sick Pay is a coalition of organisations and individuals working to reform the UK’s sick pay regime. It is supported by a cross party group of Parliamentary champions. The campaign has joined with a wide ranging group of individuals and bodies to call for sick pay reform that includes MIND, Scope, Macmillan cancer, the CIPD and ABI as well as think tanks including the Health Foundation, Resolution Foundation and the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute have all called for sick pay reforms in the past year, with the DWP overseen policy also subject to a Work & Pensions inquiry that suggested it was ‘failing in its primary purpose’.

Focal Data polled 25,000 voters across England, Scotland and Wales in January 2024. 3428 people were based in Greater London.

https://www.centreforprogressivechange.org/campaigns/sickpay

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