Businesses will view sick pay proposals as 'burden'

Many businesses will not welcome the costs of the government proposals which could see two million people on lower earnings made eligible for statutory sick pay (SSP), Canada Life Group Insurance marketing director Paul Avis has told COVER. Employers with large SSP bills in the past received refunds under the SSP Threshold scheme however this was removed in 2014 to pay for the Fit for Work Service, which Avis said had since been "much scaled down". He also added that SSP only provides £94.25 per week - paid for by employers for up to only 28 weeks - so only works as "a subsistence ben...