PAID STATUTORY SICK leave is to remain unchanged at five days per year, despite a commitment from the last government to eventually expand it to 10 days. 

It was the previous government’s policy, under legislation introduced in 2022, to expand paid sick leave to 10 days, with seven days promised in 2025 – but Fine Gael’s election manifesto proposed staying with five days per year, citing affordability concerns for businesses.

Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke TD made the announcement today, saying he was “committed to promoting working conditions in Ireland and boosting job creation”.  

“I must also ensure that we create a regulatory environment that allows businesses to remain viable, and, indeed, to thrive,” Burke added. 

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has condemned today’s announcement as both “a mistake and short-sighted”.

Statutory paid sick leave was first introduced in 2023, providing workers with three days per calendar year. It was then increased to five days in 2024. 

As it stands, the five days are paid at 70% of gross salary, with a cap of €110 per day.

Although former Taoiseach and Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar had promised to eventually double the number of days to ten by 2026, his successor Simon Harris U-turned on that pledge in a move heavily criticised by the Labour Party, who were potential coalition partners at the time. 

Burke said today that business owners and representative bodies had “consistently raised concerns about the cumulative impact of such regulatory measures in light of rising labour, input and energy costs”.

Those lobbying efforts were made by business interests in the retail and hospitality sectors, Burke said, adding that “Five days’ sick leave strikes the right balance”. 

“It gives workers income protection for five days, after which Illness Benefit is there to support them,” he said. 

The Sick Leave Act 2022 provides some financial protection to workers, often those in low-paid, precarious jobs, who are unfit to work due to illness or injury but who do not have access to a company sick leave scheme. 

ICTU general secretary Owen Reidy said it was “an appalling decision which will affect the lowest paid and the most vulnerable workers in our economy”, many of whom he said, “were being lauded by government as essential workers during Covid-19”.

“The pandemic highlighted the glaring discrepancy whereby Ireland, a wealthy country, was out of line in comparison to nearly all European  countries in not provided a modest and basic amount of paid sick leave,” Reidy said. 

Reidy also pointed to recent research from Industrial Relations News that found 65% of employers said there was “no or low” impact following the last increase to five days’ paid sick leave. 

Dr Laura Bambrick, a social policy officer with the ICTU added the government’s response to US tariffs “should be focused on protecting household spending going into our local economies and small businesses”. 

“In taking money out of the pockets of sick workers without a company sick scheme to fall back on, this decision does exactly the opposite.

“Today’s U-turn benefits all employers, regardless of whether they are impacted by tariffs or whether they are a profitable business or struggling.”

Sinn Féin TD Johnny Guirke said that “by delaying the increase, the government is sending a clear message that it prioritizes employer convenience over the well-being of workers”.

“Workers deserve certainty and security in their rights. We will continue to advocate for policies that strengthen those rights.”