What is the story here in Ireland when there is an injury in a workplace? Is the injured person entitled to sick pay? The answer is that in Ireland the employee has no statutory right to be remunerated while out on sick leave. It is therefore entirely at the power of the employer to agree whether to provide the injured employee sick pay and sick leave. The employee’s contract of employment should spell out what happens on the inability of the employee to work for reasons of sickness or injury.
Therefore as far as an injured employee is concerned, after an accident in the workplace, whether they have the right to sick pay or leave the injured employee should first look at their employment contract as under the Irish Conditions of Employment (Information) Act 2001 and 1994 the company must give to the worker an employment contract. If the injured employee’s terms of the employment contract have not included the possibility to get sick pay, however, they can even so be allowed to pick up Illness Benefit if they have paid up over time the right social insurance contributions.
Even if the injured employee has not paid in the right social insurance contributions they may possibly still be granted Illness Benefit, if their local Community Welfare Officer works out that they qualify for it.
Often an employee’s contract of employment will allow a maximum length of period of sick pay in a predetermined period, eg, two month’s sick pay in any 24-month period. There may also be phrases stated by the employer where an injured employee is either sick or injured and is not fit for work.
Take this example, if the employee is sick and cannot work, they may have to get in touch with a specific person by a certain time. Their employer can also request them to give them a medical certificate from a doctor if they are out of the workplace by being sick for more than a specified number of consecutive days.
If an injured employee is entitled to sick pay, their employer will probably require them to sign over any Illness Benefit payment from the Department of Social Protection to their employer for as long as the sick pay continues. This helps to reduce the net cost of sick pay for the employer. Some employees, who have suffered an injury following an accident in the workplace do not want to have to take out a personal injury claim against their employer, as they believe that it may mess the relationship with their boss and as a result their employment may be terminated. But, any loss of wages or salary makes the injured employee take out a claim so that they are not short of money as a result of injuries that were not their making.
If you are sick or injured after an accident at work and have lost wages or salary while you were away from the workplace, what you can do is to make a personal injury claim to recover your wages which you have lost by talking to your personal injury solicitor about starting a personal injury claim. The possibility to make a Personal injury claim against an employer is doable by any person who thinks that their Personal injury or health problem was the result of negligence by the entity that employs them.
As a result, if you think that they have been negligent in terms of safety by not providing the right training, the necessary protective equipment or not up to standard and dangerous tools, you may start to make a personal injury claim against them for an accident at work which was not your fault.
Also Read: Explain how I can terminate a No Win No Fee * Agreement
