Sick Pay, Absence, and the New Rules: What Every UK Employer Needs to Know Now

From 6 April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay changed in a way that affects every UK employer immediately. If you have not updated your absence policies, your payroll process, and your line manager briefings, you are already operating outside the law.

What Changed and When

Under the Employment Rights Act 2025, two changes to Statutory Sick Pay took effect on 6 April 2026:

SSP is now payable from the first day of sickness absence. The three waiting days — during which employees previously received no statutory pay — have been abolished.

The lower earnings limit has been abolished and replaced with a tiered rate system, making SSP accessible to lower-paid employees who previously did not qualify.

These are not minor tweaks. They represent a fundamental shift in the baseline entitlement your employees have from day one of any period of sickness.

The Immediate Compliance Problem

Many UK businesses have absence policies that were written when the three-day qualifying period was the norm. Those policies are now legally incorrect.

More concerning: many line managers are briefing employees based on those outdated policies. If a manager tells an employee that they do not receive sick pay for the first three days, and that employee subsequently does not receive it, the business is in breach of its statutory obligations.

Non-compliance with SSP is enforced by the Fair Work Agency, which launched in April 2026 with powers to investigate, issue penalties, and bring tribunal claims on behalf of workers.

Beyond the Policy Update: The Cultural Implications

The move to Day One SSP was not just a legal reform. It reflects a wider shift in the relationship between employers and employees under the new Act.

The previous system — where employees received no pay for the first three days — incentivised people to come to work while unwell. That has a real cost: presenteeism has been consistently shown to reduce productivity more than absenteeism. The financial benefit of the waiting days was largely illusory.

Businesses that adapt quickly and build a genuine culture of support around sickness and absence will find the transition easier. Those that try to claw back the change through informal pressure or ignoring the policy update will find themselves exposed.

What You Need to Do

Update your sickness and absence policy immediately to reflect Day One SSP entitlement.

Audit your payroll process to confirm SSP is being calculated and paid correctly from day one.

Brief your managers — every person who manages staff needs to know the rules have changed.

Update any employee handbook or onboarding documentation that references the old rules.

Review your self-certification and fit note processes to ensure they remain fit for purpose.

A Note on Enhanced Sick Pay

The Act sets a statutory floor — not a ceiling. If your business currently offers enhanced sick pay above the statutory minimum, there is no legal requirement to change that. But it is worth reviewing whether your current enhanced policy still achieves the outcome you intend, in light of the changed baseline.

For businesses that have previously used the waiting days as a deterrent to short-term absence, it is time to think about what genuinely effective absence management looks like — and how to build it.

Insightful Hub includes an updated Sickness and Absence Policy template and a manager briefing guide covering the April 2026 SSP changes. Get compliant today at insightfulhub.co.uk.