SICK LEAVE. A sick leave automatically leads to a loss of salary for the employee. But how much is this drop over time? Explanations.
This is one of the hot topics for the start of the 2023 school year: sick leave. The new Minister of Health, Aurélien Rousseau, has made this issue his hobbyhorse since his arrival rue de Ségur. In 2022, the stops have indeed increased by 7.9%, which is “unsustainable” for the former director and deputy director of the cabinet of several Prime Ministers (Valls, Cazeneuve, Borne). So how do you stop the momentum? François Braun’s successor intends to increase controls in order to limit abuse, with social security spending on benefits during sick leave amounting to around 14 billion euros in 2022. Nevertheless, the minister does not want a “less good reimbursement” to stem the increase, even if “it’s one of the tracks on the table.” What remuneration do we get today by being on sick leave? Explanations.
This is the main question for those who are on sick leave. During this period, money is well received by the employee, if he meets several conditions (read below). The person on leave may be remunerated by social security and by his company, in accordance with the procedures governed by law.
Sickness benefits paid by Social Security:
First of all, there is the social security which pays allowances. These are calculated according to a fairly simple formula, taking into account the wages received during the last quarter:
- ((Gross monthly salary*3)/91.25)/2 : This corresponds to the gross salary of the last three months, divided by the average duration of a quarter. This establishes the basic daily wage. This is then divided by two, making it possible to obtain the daily allowances.
- Simulation : 2000*3=6000€/91.25=65.75€/2=32.87€.
Daily allowances correspond to the amount received each day (Saturday and Sunday included) by the employee on sick leave during his absence, for a limited period (see below).
However, a maximum daily allowance is set by law: 51.70€ gross. This corresponds to a maximum gross salary equivalent to 1.8 times the Smic, or €3,144.96 gross per month. No higher amount can be paid by social security.
Sick leave benefits paid by the company
The employee’s company also pays benefits in the event of sick leave. For this you need:
- Have at least 1 year of seniority in the company (calculated from your 1st day of absence)
- Have sent the medical certificate to the employer within 48 hours
- Benefit from daily allowances (IJ) paid by Social Security
- To be treated in France or in one of the member states of the European Economic Area (EEA): Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden
- Not be a home worker or a seasonal, intermittent or temporary employee
If all of these conditions are met, the company remunerates its employee, in addition to social security, for two to six months depending on his seniority.
Furthermore, the amount of the compensation varies over time according to the following rule: a limited number of days during which the amount is equivalent to 90% of the difference between the salary usually received and the compensation paid by social security; then a number of limit days during which they are equivalent to 66.66%:
- From 1 to 5 years of seniority: 60 days of compensation (30 days at 90% and 30 days at 66.66%)
- From 6 to 10 years of seniority: 80 days of compensation (40 days at 90% and 40 days at 66.66%)
- From 11 to 15 years of seniority: 100 days of compensation (50 days at 90% and 50 days at 66.66%)
- From 16 to 20 years of seniority: 120 days of compensation (60 days at 90% and 60 days at 66.66%)
- From 21 to 25 years of seniority: 140 days of compensation (70 days at 90% and 70 days at 66.66%)
- From 26 to 30 years of seniority: 160 days of compensation (80 days at 90% and 80 days at 66.66%)
- 31 years or more of seniority: 180 days of compensation (90 days at 90% and 90 days at 66.66%)
Example on the basis of 2000€ gross per month for an employee with a little more than one year of seniority:
- Until 30e day of sick leave : 90% of €32.87 (difference between the basic daily salary and the social security allowance) = €29.58
- From 30e at 60e day of sick leave: 66.66% of €32.87 (difference between the basic daily salary and the social security allowance) = €21.91
For this simulation of the remuneration received during a sick leave, let’s take the average duration of a sick leave in 2022 -22 days- and a gross monthly salary of €2,000, assuming that the employee has more than one year of seniority in his company.
- Day 1 to 3 (included): waiting days*, no compensation received, neither from social security nor from the company
- Day 3 to 7 (included): €32.87 per day paid by social security; 0 by company (7 day deficiency)
- Day 8 to 22 (included): €32.87 per social security day + €29.58 per company day
- Total received: (32.87*20) + (29.58*15) = 1101,10€
*There is no waiting day in the case of sick leave related to a long-term illness (ALD).
Social security pays daily allowances for a maximum of 360 days every three years. Beyond these quotas, and apart from a long-term condition, the work stoppage will not be compensated. The counters will only be reset three years after the first day of the first sick leave.
On the company side, the latter only pays compensation between 60 and 180 days (see list above). The counters are reset to zero one year after the first sick leave.
In case of’long term condition (ALD), social security benefits are paid for a maximum of three years.
In order to benefit from compensation during sick leave, you must provide proof of activity with social security. The conditions to be met are not quite the same, depending on the duration of the stoppage (less or more than six months). On the other hand, they apply in a similar way for work part time Or full-time. Thus, to be compensated during a work stoppage less than six monthsit’s necessary :
- have worked at least 150 hours during the 3 calendar months (January, February, March, etc.) or the 90 days preceding the stoppage; OR
- have contributed, during the six calendar months preceding the stoppage, on the basis of remuneration at least equal to 1,015 times the amount of the minimum wage schedule set at the beginning of this period.
For a stop of more than six monthsit’s necessary :
- justify, on the date of interruption of work, affiliation to a social security scheme (CPAM, MSA) for at least 12 months And have worked at least 600 hours in the 12 calendar months or 365 days preceding the stoppage; OR
- have contributed, during the 12 calendar months or the 365 days preceding the stoppage, on the basis of remuneration at least equal to 2,030 times the amount of the minimum wage schedule set at the beginning of this period.
A sick leave is considered long-term when it exceeds six consecutive months. At this time, the doctor must note a real long-term condition (ALD). This suspension can last up to three consecutive years. In this case, the daily allowances are paid throughout the period by the health insurance. Beyond these three years, nothing more is paid. To obtain new allowances, it is necessary, for that, to make an application for invalidity.