The Government has recently passed legislation which increases employees’ sick leave entitlements from 5 days to 10 days per year as of 24 July 2021.
While this comes into effect at the end of the month, employees will only get the extra five days’ entitlement at their next entitlement date – either after reaching six months of employment with their current employer or on their sick leave entitlement anniversary (12 months after they were last entitled to sick leave).
Do I need to change all of my employees’ current employment agreements to reflect this increase in sick leave entitlement?
Employers will not necessarily need to update their employees’ employment agreements to reflect this increased employee entitlement so long as they provide the increased sick leave entitlements to their employees at the required dates as set out above.
It would be prudent to let your employees know when they will become entitled to the additional sick leave at the appropriate date.
When should I update my current employment agreements for my employees?
Employers should look at having their employment agreements reviewed every 2-3 years to ensure their agreements comply with current legislation and drafting requirements for certain clauses (i.e. trial period clauses).
If you haven’t reviewed your employment agreements recently, now would be a good time to do so as there have been a number of legislative employment law changes within the last few years.
If you would like us to review your current employment agreements or have any questions about the change in sick leave entitlements, please get in touch with one of our employment law team.
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