Sick Day Cost Calculator

The real cost of employee sickness absence in the UK

Sickness absence is one of the most significant and often underestimated costs facing UK employers. According to CIPD's 2024 Health and Wellbeing at Work report, employees take an average of 7.8 sick days per year. For a business with 20 employees on average salaries, this equates to 156 lost working days annually — with a total cost that can easily exceed £50,000 when all factors are considered.

This sick day cost calculator helps you quantify the full impact of absence, not just the salary paid while someone is off. Understanding the true cost is the first step toward building effective absence management and wellbeing strategies.

What is Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)?

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is the minimum amount employers must pay employees who are too ill to work. For 2025/26, SSP is set at £116.75 per week. Key rules include:

• Waiting days: SSP is not payable for the first three days of illness (known as waiting days). It kicks in from day 4.
• Eligibility: Employees must earn at least £123 per week (the Lower Earnings Limit) to qualify for SSP.
• Maximum duration: SSP is payable for up to 28 weeks of absence.
• Enhanced sick pay: Many employers choose to pay full or partial salary beyond SSP requirements. This is a contractual matter and must be clearly stated in the employment contract.

Hidden costs of sickness absence

Most businesses focus only on the direct cost of paying an absent employee. But the indirect costs are often larger:

• Lost productivity: The work that doesn't get done during the absence — customer interactions missed, projects delayed, deadlines slipped.
• Colleague burden: When one person is absent, their workload typically falls to colleagues. This increases stress and risks burnout among those covering.
• Management time: Absence requires HR and management time for notification calls, return-to-work interviews, occupational health referrals, and record-keeping.
• Temporary cover costs: For roles where the work cannot be deferred, hiring temporary or agency staff adds a significant premium — typically 30–50% more than the equivalent permanent hourly rate.
• Customer impact: In customer-facing roles, absence can affect service quality, complaint levels, and ultimately customer retention.

Average sickness absence by sector

Sources: CIPD Health & Wellbeing Survey 2024. Costs are salary-equivalent only and exclude cover and productivity losses.

How to reduce sickness absence costs

Reducing absence by even two or three days per employee per year can deliver significant financial savings across a business. The most effective interventions include:

• Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs): Providing access to counselling, financial advice, and wellbeing support reduces both mental health absences and presenteeism.
• Return-to-work interviews: Brief, supportive conversations after every absence — even short ones — have been shown to reduce repeat absences by up to 20%.
• Flexible working: Allowing employees to work from home or adjust hours during periods of illness reduces the binary choice between full absence and full presence.
• Physical health support: Subsidised gym membership, ergonomic workstations, and access to occupational health all contribute to lower physical illness rates.
• Mental health first aiders: Training managers and team members in mental health awareness reduces the duration of mental health-related absences, which account for around 40% of all sick days in the UK.