The Statutory Sick Pay (Coronavirus) (Suspension of Waiting Days and General Amendment) Regulations 2020 have been published and came into force on 28 March 2020. The Regulations suspend the rule in Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) where SSP is not paid for the first three qualifying days of incapacity for work.
This will mean that SSP will be payable from day one of an employee’s absence from work, rather than day four, where that absence is related to coronavirus. This will apply retrospectively from 13 March 2020. The Regulations also insert a Schedule into the Statutory Sick Pay (General) Regulations 1982 which specifies when a person is deemed to be incapable of work because the person is staying home. This now includes people with symptoms of coronavirus staying at home for 7 days and people in the household of someone with symptoms of coronavirus staying at home for 14 days and the definitions can be found in the Schedule at the end of the Regulations.
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