Labour Research March 2004

Law Queries

Sick pay after an accident at work

My mother has been off sick having suffered a work-related accident. She was shocked to discover that her occupational sick pay will stop at the end of next month, in line with the local agreement.

Should she not have the right to continue to be paid since, if she had not been at work, she would not have had the accident?

Unless there is some special provision in her contract that treats work-related illness absence differently, there is no legal obligation on employers to make any special provision for work-related accidents.

Provided that she has been treated in line with the contractual occupational sick pay provisions, then her employer has no other legal duty.

However, if she is off work due to an accident, she should be able to take a personal injury claim against her employer, which would include a claim for lost earnings.

* More information: LRD booklet, Law at work 2003