Illness

Sick pay

PAM’s collective agreements specify better terms and conditions for sick pay than provided by law.

In most collective agreements, the employer's obligation to pay wages is a maximum of 8 weeks, depending on the duration of the employment relationship. In the collective agreements. It is mainly agreed that the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela) pays the national sickness allowance directly to the employer, in which case the employer pays the employee sick pay. Otherwise, Kela can pay the daily allowances directly to the employee and the employer only pays the difference. 

The amount of national sickness allowance is based on taxable earnings from employment, such that people with lower incomes receive a higher percentage share of their earnings than those with higher incomes. The allowance is payable for a period of 300 weekdays. National sickness allowance is not granted to people who are studying or receive rehabilitation allowance, accident compensation or pension. Unemployed people are entitled to receive national sickness allowance after 55 sick days.

If the illness lasts longer than the wage payment obligation in the collective agreement, Kela pays the sickness allowance to the employee. Collective agreements also contain provisions on notification of sick leave, medical certificates, recurrence of illness and illness of an employee's child under 10 years of age. In addition, the employer gives more detailed instructions at the workplace to whom the information is to be given in case of illness and how the delivery of certificates is to be collected and handled.