Alex Whittingham - sorry to say that the utopia you refer to does not exist. THE EMPLOYER pays the SMP and SPP and only gets a percentage back. As for SSP etc there is no refund at all. It should also to be noted that for smaller companies (not BA of course) the cost of employing substitute staff and training them etc is a very onerous and real cost which the "equalists" dont seem to want to know about.