Hi, been driving near 2 years now and the company I work for only offer 1 day sick pay, 1 day bereavement pay and I’m waiting on hearing about getting some time off either as holiday or unpaid.
Is this normal for the industry? Are your company flexible when it comes to illness or bereavement? Do I shut up and get back to work asap and be grateful?
Thanks
Yeah I think that’s pretty much the norm. I know some places don’t give any sick pay as they are not obliged to. I suppose when you look at it from an employers point of view it cuts down on people taking days off that are unnessesery.
I’ve been with my firm 12 years. No sick pay, no bereavement pay either. Count yourself lucky.
I think the lack of sick pay - proper, full sick pay - is outrageous in the 21st century. I know very few drivers who get it and have never had it myself. Why isn’t it a legal requirement in this day and age?
As someone, who used to get full sick pay from the first day of absence and regularly used to take the absolute ■■■■ with sick leave (a minimum of 3 weeks a year spread over 2 occasions). I think it’s a good thing from a business point of view not to offer sick pay. Fair enough if someone has broken a leg/arm, involved in a RTA, lost a family member, missus has done one with the window cleaner and took the kids, then yes IMO there should be sick pay for people who have been employed in their jobs for a year or two.
For people with coughs/colds/flu/S&D/tooth ache etc, it should be ok mate well no pay see you when your better.
In my current job we get ssp after the first 3 days, I now haven’t had a day off sick since 2012, there have been days where I’ve been hanging out my arse and I’ve definitely phoned in with less in the past but dragged myself into work for the money.
NewLad:
As someone, who used to get full sick pay from the first day of absence and regularly used to take the absolute ■■■■ with sick leave (a minimum of 3 weeks a year spread over 2 occasions). I think it’s a good thing from a business point of view not to offer sick pay. Fair enough if someone has broken a leg/arm, involved in a RTA, lost a family member, missus has done one with the window cleaner and took the kids, then yes IMO there should be sick pay for people who have been employed in their jobs for a year or two.
For people with coughs/colds/flue/S&D/tooth ache etc, it should be ok mate well no pay see you when your better.In my current job we get ssp after the first 3 days, I now haven’t had a day off sick since 2012, there have been days where I’ve been hanging out my arse and I’ve definitely phoned in with less in the past but dragged myself into work for the money.
These two extremes are the problem … I know what you’re saying about people taking the ■■■■, but I don’t see why anyone in this day and age should be in the position of not being able to afford to stay off work when they’re ill. Even with a bad cold you’re less alert and more likely to make your health worse if you push yourself to be at work when you really should be at home in bed with a mug of Lemsip, not to mention the chance of passing on your germs to your colleagues. It seems ridiculous that people feel they’re forced to go into work however grotty they’re feeling.
Tube drivers are on £50k a year. 
A few of my mates in office jobs get 5 or so sick days. It’s amazing how many of them are abroad on said sick days. Many just see it as a holiday extention.
Honestly mate, I was an absolute ■■■■ when it came to time off sick.
I just knew how to play the system, it was really simple, sometimes you’d get caught out when you’ve had the maximum amount of occasions off, (without punishment) then you genuinely fall ill and have to take a 6 month verbal warning, 6 months passes and you start again.
What I think is a better incentive to stop people going sick, whilst looking after your staff who have fallen I’ll, is to pay an attendance bonus/sick bonus, where an employer will pay full sick pay based on length of service (say a week for every years service), but if that employee doesn’t go on sick they are given a bonus. I know some companies pay £100 a 1/4 then £500 if you do a full year, while others pay £100 just for not going sick in December.
Carrot and stick is always the best way to treat you employees.
The way I see it is this…
If you’re sick through a work related illness or injury, you should get full pay.
If you’re sick through a cold (take a dose of MTFU) hangover or whatever then you should not get paid.
For long term illnesses or serious things like heart attacks, cancer, MS, or any other long term or potentially fatal illness then you should have your own private insurance to cover you.
If your genuinely sick through cold flu etc and your employer are not prepared to pay sick just go into work and give everyone else it turn up at customers and give them it as well rather selfish but if they are not prepared to have a benefit of looking after good loyal employees in the hour of need.
I wonder what they will do if someone turned up with a stomach upsets or diahorea just let you work on and an employer who thinks that a worker is playing system they should have a structure in place to deal with the shysters
Private insurance for cancer serious illnesses? Who will be able to afford that.
viking35dp:
Private insurance for cancer serious illnesses? Who will be able to afford that.
Me. A critical illness policy is not expensive. When I got a mortgage I got one with it - I normally refuse any add-ons but that day I went with the flow. So then I goes and gets cancer and the house is paid off. Then I got better. Result.
th2013:
viking35dp:
Private insurance for cancer serious illnesses? Who will be able to afford that.Me. A critical illness policy is not expensive. When I got a mortgage I got one with it - I normally refuse any add-ons but that day I went with the flow. So then I goes and gets cancer and the house is paid off. Then I got better. Result.
They are not expensive if you get policy whilst your young and continue paying but not if your 40+ taking one out or if you have sadly been diagnosed
when I worked at corus we got sick after 3 waiting days . full pay for 26 weeks and half pay for 26 weeks (it used to be average wage inc o/t ) as you can imagine there were some who you could mark on a calendar when they would be off every year, others who would never be off . on the other hand I once (80,s) worked for a small firm where half the wage was made up of timekeeping/attendance allowance with no sick scheme . even though the conditions were Dickensian anyone phoning in sick was genuinely ill .
I think I must be out of touch with reality then.
The company I work for pays 2 or 3 days for a bereavement, and our sick pay is 50% of our full salary for up to 6 months in a calender year, but only after the first three days off sick.
No-one here takes the mickey out of it, in fact I’d say the company has an extremely low number of days off sick.
We all spend many weeks away in Europe so if a driver gets a case of man-flu then he just gets on with it, but with the knowledge that if seriously ill then the boss will pull out all the stops to get him home.
I guess that’s the result of treating the workforce with respect and keeping them by and large, a happy bunch of drivers.
maga:
Many just see it as a holiday extention.
Thats what it should be 
RACHACE:
Hi, been driving near 2 years now and the company I work for only offer 1 day sick pay, 1 day bereavement pay and I’m waiting on hearing about getting some time off either as holiday or unpaid.Is this normal for the industry? Are your company flexible when it comes to illness or bereavement? Do I shut up and get back to work asap and be grateful?
Thanks
As far as i’m aware no employer has (or had too)to pay you SSP. You could claim that yourself from DWP.
Lolipop produced this link…gov.uk/statutory-sick-pay
And it says its paid by your employer. To the best of my knowledge the rules have just changed, i’m not certain of the date. But enough to say that yes an employer is liable to pay you your SSP whereas previously they where not. This is a very recent change, and with out googling to check i think it comes into operation about anyday now.
We get 3 days bereavement, and 6 months sick pay after 5 years service. Not too shabby.
An employer has been liable to pay ssp as far back as 2000 may even be longer.
The company can only claim the SSP back if its more than a certain % of the total NI (employers and employees) the company has paid out.