The employee who is unable to work due to illness or injury will receive sick pay whilst on sick leave. Employment contract law stipulates that the employer shall provide pay for an employee who is on sick leave for ten days (the day of falling ill + nine weekdays). If the employee has been engaged by the employer for over a month, full pay will be given, but for those who have been engaged for less than one month, one half of the normal pay will be allowed. At the end of this period the Finnish National Pensions Institute (Kela) will pay a daily allowance regulated by the health insurance law. However, significantly longer periods of sick pay have been achieved by bargaining and are contained in many collective agreements.
The employee must inform the employer of any absence from work without delay. A reliable proof of the inability to work (for example a medical certificate) needs to be submitted, should the employer request this. The agreed method for informing the employer of any absence, and the number of days an employee may stay on sick leave without providing a medical certificate, is often stated in the employment contract, or has otherwise been agreed upon at the workplace.
The employee is not entitled to receive any sick leave pay if the inability to work was self-inflicted or caused by serious carelessness.