STEPS to reduce the time it takes to issue sick pay to Islanders who have been signed off work are being taken, the government has said.
It comes after complaints from Islanders who said they had been signed off by their doctor, but had been told by the government that their claim for sick pay would take up to a month to process – putting them in financial difficulty in the meantime.
Responding in a statement, a spokesperson for the Employment, Social Security and Housing department said: “We are aware that some individuals claiming sickness benefit experienced some delays in receiving their payments recently.
“We encourage anyone who is worried about their claim or who is struggling to manage financially while waiting for their claim to be reviewed to contact us directly by phone or at Union Street as soon as possible.”
It added: “The majority of sickness claims are processed within two days and only those that need further intervention are currently taking up to four weeks. We are always aiming to improve our services and would like to reassure Islanders that we have put measures in place to ensure waiting times are kept as low as possible.”
