STAFF sickness-related absences are costing small firms an average of £1,500 each, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).

The organisation is calling on the Government to introduce an employer's relief for the recovery of statutory sick pay (SSP) to help offset the problem at small firms.

Although it admits that long-term sickness absence is not a huge issue for the sector, it says when it does have an impact the costs can be high.

FSB members said that on average, small businesses only experience 2.4 days sickness absence per employee each year – much lower than the national average of 7.7 days per employee.

A quarter said they experienced no sickness absence at all and 81% said that they were not at all affected by long-term sickness absence.

But the 9% which did suffer from major disruption because of staff illness ended up being out of pocket by more than £5,000 each.

The current system for calculating how much SSP an employer can claim back comes under the Percentage Threshold Scheme, which the FSB said was confusing and time consuming.

Around four in 10 small businesses reckon that dealing with sickness absence and holiday entitlement is among the most complex aspects of employment law.

The FSB says this should be simplified so small firms can recover their costs more quickly. It is calling for the creation of a small employers’ relief for all firms with an annual National Insurance Contributions bill of less than £45,000.

They would be able to recover relief in the same way that statutory maternity pay is recovered. The FSB says this would ease the administrative burden if the same calculation system was used for both.

FSB national chairman John Walker said: “Small firms act like a tight-knit family and value the contribution their staff bring to the business. And research shows that staff in smaller firms are more often committed and loyal.

“But sickness absence is one of the most complex pieces of employment law they have to deal with. It can also be costly with small businesses paying around £1,500 over the past 12 months.

“The Government must provide small employers’ relief for statutory sick pay in the same way they do for statutory maternity pay so those small businesses that experience a member of staff on long-term sickness absence, are not hampered and are given the support they need.”