In Sweden, the grace period for the first day of illness, i.e. no pay, has been in use since the 1990s. The model is not without problems, but the current right-wing government wants to maintain the grace period.
STOCKHOLM Finland’s new government intends to make the first day of sick leave an unpaid deductible day. The same practice has been tried in Sweden, but it has also been changed a couple of times.
Seeing Ylen Petteri Orpon (co.) the government’s draft program says that the first day of sick leave is a self-responsibility day, for which the employer is not obliged to pay wages, if not agreed otherwise in the terms of employment or employment contract. If the sick leave lasts more than five days, there is no deductible, and not when the inability to work is caused by a work accident or occupational disease.
In Sweden, the deductible for sick leave has varied since the early days of social security, i.e. since the 1950s.
In Sweden, the deductible for sickness has varied since the early days of social security, i.e. since the 1950s. Sometimes the employee did not lose pay for sick time, but in the 1990s, Sweden introduced a grace period. The goal was to eliminate fraud and rock days.
At first, the grace period was implemented so that you did not receive a salary from the first day of illness. It was difficult because the first day could be exceptionally short or exceptionally long, so the grace period hit very unfairly.
In 2019, the grace period was changed as a waiting period reduction.
Now the grace period is calculated so that a fifth is deducted from the average weekly earnings during the period of illness. Sick pay is 80 percent of the normal salary.
However, there are exceptions to the model. For example, if the doctor estimates that there will be several sickness absences during the year, you can get an exemption from the waiting period.
The grace period deduction was out of use during the corona years. At that time, we did not want employees to come to work with symptoms in fear of losing their pay.
Carenssi divides the right and the left
Carence reduction divides the political field.
The previous, i.e. the government led by the Social Democrats, launched an investigation into the problems related to the retirement allowance, which are caused, for example, by low-paid workers in the care sector. In that context, the possibility of waiving the grace period was hinted at and the matter began to be investigated.
Among other things, Sweden’s SAK or LO supports the removal of the grace period.
Last fall, power passed to the right-wing government, which finished the investigation work that had started. Instead, the new government wanted to find out whether the grace period reduction could be extended. However, it fell due to the opposition of the government’s support party, the Sweden Democrats.
Therefore, the one-day grace period reduction will continue as before.