Teachers' sick leave and pay are mostly governed by the Burgundy Book scheme, which is incorporated into teachers’ contracts of employment.
Academies, independent and free schools may set their sick pay schemes, but a number follow the provisions of the Burgundy Book sick pay scheme. Any member in doubt should request a copy of the sick pay scheme from their employer.
Sick pay
The Burgundy Book provides a sliding scale of sick pay based on the teacher's length of service:
Burgundy Book sick pay | ||
Length of service | Sick pay entitlements | |
During the first year of service: | Full pay for 25 working days and, after completing four calendar months’ service, half pay for 50 working days. | |
During the second year of service: | Full pay for 50 working days and half pay for 50 working days. | |
During the third year of service: | Full pay for 75 working days and half pay for 75 working days. | |
During the fourth and successive years: | Full pay for 100 working days and half pay for 100 working days | |
This sick leave sliding scale is a minimum and employers may extend it in individual cases. The Burgundy Book scheme counts only working days for sick leave entitlements, excluding holidays and weekends. Teachers can use the following as a rough guide for full and half pay, adjusted for any school closures.
Sick pay in months | ||
Length of service | Sick pay in months | |
During the first year service: | of | Full pay for 1½ months; and, after four calendar months’ service, half pay for 3 months. |
During the second year of service: | Full pay for 3 months; half pay for 3 months. | |
During the third year of service: | Full pay for 4½ months; half pay for 4½ months. | |
During the fourth and successive years: | N | Full pay for 6 months; half pay for 6 months. |
Teachers covered by the Burgundy Book scheme may not be aware of statutory sick pay (SSP), which starts from the 4th day of absence and is payable for up to 28 weeks. SSP forms part of full sick pay and is added to half sick pay. After 28 weeks, teachers may claim employment and support allowance (ESA). Employers must notify employees when SSP ends and provide form SSP1 for ESA claims. SSP is particularly relevant for teachers in their first year of service with limited Burgundy Book entitlements.
If you are receiving full sick pay before the holiday and your illness continues into the holiday, you will continue to receive full sick pay during the holiday period. The same principle applies to half-pay. Moving from one local authority to another does not affect your sick pay.
Part-time teachers
Sick leave is based on the school’s working days, not individual workdays. Part-time teachers receive sick pay based on their actual salary for up to 100 school days. E.g. A teacher on a 0.4 contract receives their 0.4 salary for 100 working days, and then 50% of that for another 100 days.
Independent schools
may set their sick pay schemes, but many follow the Burgundy Book sick pay scheme. academies and free schools may establish their sick pay schemes – but many follow the provisions of the Burgundy Book.
Supply teachers
Supply teachers aren’t covered by the Burgundy Book’s sick pay provisions.
Sick leave
Year of service and calculation
The sick leave year typically runs from 1 April to 31 March. However, teachers absent due to illness on 31 March will not be entitled to the subsequent year’s allowance until they have recovered and are back at work.
Some academies run their sick leave year from 1 September to 31 August, but you will need to check your employer’s sick leave arrangements to see which dates apply.
To calculate a teacher’s entitlement during a year, a year is deemed to begin on 1 April and end on 31 March. Where a teacher takes up their first teaching appointment after 1 April in any year, the full entitlement that year applies.
A teacher in their first year of service who has not completed four months’ service at the start of a period of sick leave, will continue to accrue service while absent on full pay for 25 days. If by the end of that period, they have accrued four months’ service, they will then be entitled to receive half pay for 50 days.
Reporting sickness and medical certification
Your school or college policy is likely to require you to contact them by a certain time in the morning and whom to contact. The time is likely to be before the start of the school or college day. If you do not make contact, this may be judged as an unauthorised absence, which could lead to disciplinary action against you and/or loss of pay for each day you do not inform your employer of your absence.
Teachers must self-certify sickness absences lasting 4-7 days and provide doctors’ certificates for absences over seven days. Schools may have additional absence monitoring procedures, but these do not affect teachers’ entitlement to sick pay under the Burgundy Book scheme. Frequent or prolonged absences may require earlier or more frequent doctors’ certificates.
If your sick leave extends into the school holiday, you must continue to submit doctor’s certificates, as required, even though the school is closed.
If you are absent due to illness on 31 March and continue to remain off sick into April and subsequent months, your sick leave will continue to be counted against the previous year’s entitlement.
Teachers whose sick leave extends into the school holiday must continue to submit medical certificates, as required, even though the school or academy is closed.
A long period of absence
If a teacher is absent from work due to illness on 31 March, the period of absence will continue to be counted against the previous year’s allowance and the new allowance will not start until the teacher is back at work.
Where there is concern about a prolonged period of absence or frequent spells of absence, you may be required at any time to be examined by an approved medical practitioner. The cost of such an examination is covered by the employer.
Sickness due to an accident at work or infectious diseases
Where a teacher is absent as a result of an accident arising out of, and in the course of, employment, including extra-curricular and voluntary activities, or there is evidence to show that an absence was due to an infectious or contagious disease contracted as a direct result of a teacher’s employment, the teacher will be entitled to full pay for a maximum of six calendar months which is not reckoned against the normal sliding scale entitlement to sick pay and sick leave.