SSP - cant afford it

[NewCourierSE]

We are employing 5 part time workers. One of them became ill and went to SSP. She started work 3 month ago and earn more than 113£ per week. The problem is that we cant afford to pay sick pay at statutory level (89£ a week). Is there any option to ask HMRC for advence payment in this situation ?

 

[Bazza500]

You cannot claim sick pay from HMRC. You are responsible for paying it.

 

[Scott-Copywriter]

We are employing 5 part time workers. One of them became ill and went to SSP. She started work 3 month ago and earn more than 113£ per week. The problem is that we cant afford to pay sick pay at statutory level (89£ a week). Is there any option to ask HMRC for advence payment in this situation ?

The ability to reclaim SSP was abolished in 2014.

 

[Mr D]

If not able to afford £89 a week your company has other issues to deal with.

 

[Dean Logan FCA]

When they abolished reclaim of SSP they gave the £3,000 (was £2,000) Employment Allowance -deduction off your Employers NIC contributions per year.
I've not seen many small business cases where SSP costs have exceeded this annual amount.

 

[Paul Ando]

Things have very much changed as we all know with Covid. As a small business, I have my self been working for many weeks without pay. A member of staff has gone off what looks like could be long term illness. I am struggling to make ends meet and now having to pay SSP, financially this is devastating. ( All this as Boris and the boys party).
I know of many small businesses that are suffering the same. With everything rising it will get more difficult. Does anyone know of any help available?

 

[KateCB]

It's harsh, but if things are that bad you don't need 5 part time members of staff. Sadly I know the pain, we closed our business after 23 years as many of our customers disappeared during the Pandemic...so bite the bullet do what you need to do. The help was given in the form of the employers ni allowance so if that didn't help, it's time for some hard decisions. Good luck.

 

[Paul Norman]

There is, to my knowledge, no specific help available in this situation.

As an employer you are responsible for the costs of your staff, including SSP.

If the business no longer can afford that then it may be worth considering if you can manage on 4 staff.

If the problem is short term, you can use a bank overdraft to bridge the gap - the amounts are small, by the sound of it.

 

[IanSuth]

Don't think this is the same poster as originally - so we don't know how many staff they have and their hours

 

[Mr D]

Things have very much changed as we all know with Covid. As a small business, I have my self been working for many weeks without pay. A member of staff has gone off what looks like could be long term illness. I am struggling to make ends meet and now having to pay SSP, financially this is devastating. ( All this as Boris and the boys party).
I know of many small businesses that are suffering the same. With everything rising it will get more difficult. Does anyone know of any help available?

Its part of the responsibility we take on when we take on staff.
They must be paid, they must have money. Us owners or directors not so much.

Though struggling to pay SSP for one staff member raises the question of whether the business is viable as it is. Do other changes need making, other staff reduced in hours etc? Or is the business about to go insolvent / bankrupt? Hard questions that don't need answers posted on here but would suggest looking at.

I had a manager once who stopped payment for staff because the business could not afford it. She took her wage, delayed staff payment.
And someone in her office let other staff know. It didn't go down well.

 

[justintime]

It's actually £123 a week and if the pay fluctuates it's the average of the last 8 weeks. If still over then unfortunately no help is available to you, but bear in mind that if the employees earn more than c£200 a week you are saving on employers NI, which should go towards the costs of SSP. Just for clarity SSP is £99.35 a week (appreciate it could have been a typing error in your OP)

 

[Newchodge]

It's actually £123 a week and if the pay fluctuates it's the average of the last 8 weeks. If still over then unfortunately no help is available to you, but bear in mind that if the employees earn more than c£200 a week you are saving on employers NI, which should go towards the costs of SSP. Just for clarity SSP is £99.35 a week (appreciate it could have been a typing error in your OP)

The original post is 5 uears old!