Are homeworkers entitled to sick pay?

To be entitled to statutory sick pay (SSP), you must:

• be in work;
• be aged between 16 and 65 when your sickness began;
• be earning enough to pay National Insurance contributions (£82 per week from April 2005). If your pay varies, your entitlement depends on your average pay over the last eight weeks; and you must be absent from work due to illness for at least four consecutive days.

You will not qualify if you are self-employed or have not started work yet.

If you qualify for SSP, it is normally paid in the same way as your wages. It is paid at a flat rate (£75.40 a week from April 2008) and can be paid for up to 28 weeks, if your sickness lasts that long. It is not paid for the first three days that you are on sick leave; these are called ‘waiting days’. Employers can ask for reasonable evidence of incapacity.

In practice, this means a self-certification form for the first seven days of absence (including the first three waiting days) and a doctor’s certificate after that.