Making a Claim under the Sick Pay Trust
The Scheme does not pay sick pay benefit for the first three days of an illness or injury. Sick Pay benefit of €48 a day is paid from the fourth day of illness for five working days each week up to a maximum benefit of 50 working days in a calendar year.
To make a claim, you must satisfy the following conditions:
- be registered in the Construction Workers’ Pension Scheme and under age 70.
- have paid at least 13 contributions into the Scheme in the six months immediately before the first day of the illness you are claiming for.
- be or have been, employed by an employer registered in the Scheme during the period covered by your claim (you cannot claim sick-pay benefit for any period of unemployment).
- make your claim for benefit within two months of the date your illness or injury began.
Making an initial claim
A standard sick pay benefit form (SP1) must be completed. You can download the sick pay benefit form here. Section A should be completed by the member making the claim and Section B should be completed by the employer. The completed form should be returned to the team in the Construction Workers’ Sick Pay Trust (CWSPT), along with copies of evidence from a doctor or hospital, or copies of the weekly Social Welfare Certificates. The evidence provided must cover the period from the first day of illness or injury.
As all payments will be paid directly into a bank account, CWSPT will request member’s bank details at the time of the initial claim. Claims for sick pay benefit will be processed by the CWSPT team and once everything is in order, the benefit will be paid to the member’s bank account directly.
If you are too ill to fill the form in yourself, someone else can do it for you. If you make your claim two months or more after the start of your illness or injury, you will need to enclose a letter explaining why your claim is late.
Receiving your Sick Pay Benefits
When your claim is processed, CWPS will send an email to you advising you that payment has been lodged to your bank account. You will be advised to log on to the CWPS Member Online Access Area in order to view your sick pay benefit payslip. If you do not have an email address or are not registered for Member Online Access, CWPS will send your payslip by post. A further claim form “claim for continuous sick pay benefit” form SP2 is sent to your employer for completion. If you are still absent from work due to illness or injury this SP2 from must be completed by your employer and returned to CWPS along with copies of your evidence from a doctor or hospital so you can receive further sick pay benefit.
Members should keep their contact details up to date at all times to ensure that there is no delay in receiving their benefit. Register for Member Online Access the Member Online Area here.
Construction Industry Holidays:
Benefit is not payable during these holiday periods, however, if the claimant’s employer was open for business and work was available benefit may be payable. We will need a letter from the employer confirming that they were open.
Claiming for Continuous Sick Pay Benefit
If a member is off work due to illness or injury for a continuous period, their employer will need to complete a ‘Claim for Continuous Sick Pay Benefit’ form (SP2) and return it to CWPS with evidence from a doctor or hospital for the member. This allows the member to receive sick pay benefit on a continuous basis.
What you need to do in order to claim for continuous sick pay benefit:
What you need to do:
- Send updated evidence from a doctor or hospital to your employer for each week you are absent from work
What your employer needs to do:
- Complete a ‘claim for continuous sick pay benefit’ form (SP2) and return it to CWPS for you for each week you are sick/injured.
- Send updated evidence from a doctor or hospital to CWPS each week to support a continuous claim
Please note: Sick Pay Benefit is not paid for the first 3 days of absence and is paid on a 5 day week basis Monday to Friday.
How to claim supplementary benefit
If you are not entitled to the State Illness benefits, but have paid at least 13 contributions paid to the Scheme, you may be entitled to an extra benefit known as Supplementary benefit. This is equal to the current amount of State Illness benefit and is paid as well as the standard benefit.
What you need to do:
- Wait for the ‘Standard Sick Pay’ benefit to be approved by CWPS.
- Complete an SP3 form.
- Supply written evidence from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (DEASP), that the State benefit has been refused.
Please Note: Sick pay benefit is not taxed. However, employees should declare it as income when they are making their yearly tax returns.
Should you have any questions regarding the Construction Workers’ Pension Scheme or the Sick Pay Trust, please contact us via the contact form here. Alternatively, send an email to sickpay@cwspt.ie.