Public service sick leave bill costing over €550m a year

SICK LEAVE across the public service is costing over €550 million a year, according to new official estimates given to the Oireachtas Committee of Public Accounts.

A report sent by the secretary general at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, Robert Watt, to the committee says €488 million was paid out in respect of certified sick leave and a further €63 million on uncertified sick leave.

At present, employees in the public service can avail of up to seven days’ uncertified sick leave in a 12-month period. Staff can receive full pay for certified sickness absence for up to six months in one year, and half-pay thereafter, subject to a maximum of 12 months’ paid sick leave in any period of four years.

However, the Government has signalled it wants major reforms to paid sick leave arrangements

One public service union, the PSEU, which represents middle grade civil servants, told members in a note last month that while no formal reform proposals had been put forward, “it is worth noting that unions have been advised that the State as an employer is not in a position to sustain the cost of the current arrangements”.

It warned members that “significant changes are likely to be sought”.

Changing existing sick-leave arrangements would involve one of the most significant reforms in conditions for serving public service staff in years. It is expected to involve negotiations with unions at the Labour Relations Commission similar to the process that resulted in the negotiation of revised pension arrangements for new staff last year.

Some sources said there was an expectation the Government’s opening position could involve cutting the period for which full salary is paid from six months to three months.

Mr Watt’s document, which was published by the public accounts committee on its website yesterday, says the absence rate among the 36,571 staff in the Civil Service was running at an average of 4.9 per cent or 11.3 days. It says the direct salary cost of certified sick leave in the service was €57 million, while uncertified sick leave cost €6 million.

Mr Watt’s letter says the cost of certified sick leave for teachers was €61 million. At primary level, teachers had an average absence rate of 8.3 days, while in secondary, community and comprehensive schools the average absence rate was 8.7 days.

The document says the absence rate in the education sector was based on the full year, including weekends, public holidays and periods of school closures.

The largest cost arising from sick leave is in the health sector, which is the biggest employer in the public service with over 104,000 personnel.

The cost of certified sick leave in the health service is €255 million a year, the letter states, while uncertified sick leave cost €35 million.

Sick leave in An Garda Síochána cost €36 million, while in local authorities the bill for certified sick leave was €62 million and €11 million for uncertified sick leave.

In a report last year, employers’ body Ibec said in the private sector workers missed 5.98 days from work on average, an absence rate of 2.58 per cent. It said this rate was down on the average of 3.38 per cent recorded in its last similar study, carried out in 2004.

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform said its reform programme contained a commitment to review central sick-leave policies in the civil and public service to improve productivity and cut absences.

“The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform has undertaken a review of sick-leave provisions across the public service and has commenced a process of discussions with the public service unions with a view to implementing changes to the sick-leave arrangements.”

“The primary focus of any changes to the sick-leave arrangements will be to realise productivity and performance gains. Any reduction in the provisions for paid sick leave will also reduce the costs associated with sick leave.”