Sick leave and sick pay in PAM’s collective agreements

The law says that workers have the right to get paid when they are on sick leave. If you have had the job for at least one month, you have the right to get full wages for the day when you get sick, if it is a working day, and for nine weekdays after that. If you have had your job for less than one month, you will get 50% of the wages during the sick leave.

The rules about how wages are paid during sick leave vary between PAM’s collective agreements. You find the rules that apply to you in the collective agreement for your sector. In most collective agreements, the employer must pay wages for a maximum of eight weeks. If you have had the job for a short time, the employer must pay wages for a shorter period.

Wages during sick leave, and Kela’s sickness allowance

If you are sick, Kela pays you a sickness allowance (sairauspäiväraha) after a waiting period. The waiting period is usually the day when you get sick and nine working days after that.

In most collective agreements, it has been agreed that Kela will pay the sickness allowance to the employer, and the employer then pays sick pay (wages) to the worker. Kela may also pay the sickness allowance to the worker, and the employer will then pay to the worker the difference between the wages and the sickness allowance.

If you are still sick after the period when you have the right to get your wages (the rules in the collective agreement), Kela will pay the sickness allowance to you.

To get Kela’s sickness allowance, you must have a doctor’s certificate (a medical certificate). The maximum period of sickness allowance based on medical certificate A is usually 60 days. After this, you need medical certificate B or another statement about not being fit for work. The maximum period of sickness allowance is then 300 working days. Read more about the Kela sickness allowance.

The amount of the sickness allowance is calculated based on your taxable work income (wages). For people whose wages are lower, the sickness allowance is a higher percentage of the wages. The sickness allowance is usually about 70% of your annual income. You can not get the allowance if you are studying or get a rehabilitation allowance (kuntoutusraha), compensation based on an accident (tapaturmakorvaus), or pension.

How do I show that I have the right to sick pay?

It has been agreed in collective agreements that to get sick pay, you must prove that you are sick. This is done with a doctor’s certificate or another statement that the employer accepts. In some situations, a nurse’s certificate can be used. A doctor’s certificate is the strongest of these.

The employer may also accept another statement, or you may be able to be on sick leave without medical certificate report yourself sick. Read more about sick leave without medical certificate

If a doctor states that you are not fit for work, you will get sick pay during the sick leave

Collective agreements say that employers can not choose to pay sick pay just for some sicknesses, and not for others. If a doctor has found that you are not able to work, you will get sick pay.

In the certificate, the doctor enters the ICD code for the sickness. ICD is the International Classification for Diseases. The code and the doctor’s opinion that you are not fit for work together give you the right to get your wages (sick pay) during the sick leave. However, the codes that mean that you have only made a visit to a doctor’s office do not give you the right to sick pay. In the certificates that only have this kind of code, the doctor does not usually say that you would not be able to work.

In Finland, there are no rules or recommendations about how long a worker can be on sick leave based on a specific diagnosis. Recommendations are now being prepared.

Some of the ICD codes are codes for a higher category. When a doctor finds that you are not fit for work, for example the code F43 should not be used alone. The doctor should use a more specific diagnosis, for example F43.1. But if the doctor writes a certificate that only has a generic code, it is not your fault.

This means that employers can not use the code as a reason for not paying you sick pay, or for only paying it for a short time. Even if Kela decides differently about your right to sickness allowance, the rules given in the collective agreement must be followed.

If the employer is not happy with the doctor’s certificate that you give them, they must give you the name of the doctor that they want you to use to get a new certificate. The employer will then pay your visit to the doctor.

For more information, see the collective agreement

Collective agreements also have rules about telling your employer that you are sick, about medical certificates, what to do if you get the same sickness again, and what to do if your child under 10 years old gets sick.

The employer will also tell in more detail you who must tell when you get sick, and where you must bring or send the certificates.

Read more:

• What if I get sick during my annual holiday?
• Sick leave without medical certificate

Useful links

• Employment Contracts Act (pdf)
• Collective agreements for different sectors