Bectu and the Fabians urge government to act on sick pay for self-employed
Bectu and the Fabian Society are calling on the government to introduce a long-overdue sick pay system for the self-employed, after new research revealed they lose an average of 81% of their income when too ill to work.
A new report from the Fabian Society, supported by Bectu’s parent union Prospect and Community union, highlights how millions of self-employed and freelance workers, particularly in the creative industries, are left without a safety net when they fall ill, forcing many into debt or to keep working while sick.
The report proposes a government-run opt-out sickness insurance scheme, costing self-employed workers £5 per month, with a small levy on the businesses that engage freelancers. Payments would match statutory sick pay for employees.
As the government’s ‘make work pay’ agenda introduces welcome reforms to employees’ sick pay, the report urges the government to also support the self-employed.
Head of Bectu Philippa Childs said:
“Freelancers hold up our creative industries, but too often they miss out on vital support that other workers benefit from.
“The lack of an adequate sick pay regime means our members are often put in desperate situations, knowing that illness could cost them far more than just their health.
None of us should have to choose between our work and our health. A sick pay safety net for the self-employed is long overdue, and we urge the government to take these proposals seriously.”
Bectu will continue campaigning so that freelancers and the self-employed are no longer treated as second-class workers when it comes to protections like sick pay.