Revealed: The best and worst countries in Europe for sick pay

Sick pay has become a contentious topic in recent times, with countless Europeans required to take time off work to recover from illness as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

With over 83,000 Google searches a month¹ for the term ‘statutory sick pay’, a new report by The Compensation Expertshas ranked European Nations on how well they compensate their citizens in times of ill health.

The ten best countries in Europe for sick pay

Iceland leads the way in Europe for their workers’ sick pay package. Employees across the Nordic nation are entitled to an impressive 100% of their wage for a minimum of two days for every month they’ve been in employment.

Trailing closely, fellow Northern European nations Norway and Denmark also offer great sick pay entitlement; each provides nationals with 100% of their salary, with the Norwegian government covering a worker for up to a year, and Danes covered for up to 22 weeks within a nine-month period.

The top ten European countries for sick pay can be seen below:

Ranking	Country	Minimum % of wage that can be paid during sick leave	Maximum period allowed off as statutory sick pay
1	Iceland	100%	2 days for each week worked
2	Norway	100%	52 weeks
3	Luxembourg	100%	89 weeks
4	Denmark	100%	30 days + 22 weeks
5	Austria	50%	78 weeks
6	Germany	70%	84 weeks
7	Finland	70%	44 weeks
8	Switzerland	80%	103 weeks
9	Monaco	€146.67 per day / 90% salary	Determined by employee contract
10	Montenegro	70%	65 days*

The ten worst countries in Europe for sick pay

Malta might be known for stunning views and sun, but it’s been revealed as the worst country in Europe for sick pay, only paying employees €420.30 per month.

Ireland and the United Kingdom follow closely behind – with Ireland’s sick pay being determined by employee contract type and the UK paying only £96.35 per week, for up to 28 weeks.