Holiday Pay

[Le Chat]

My employer needs 1 months notice for any holidays taken. He was not sure until this week, about opening hours between Xmas and New Year, so we all kept back a few days holiday in case he closed the business. (Estate Agents) He did last year but that was the first year ever. Anyway, he has decided to open between Xmas and New Year, therefore staff lose the extra days holidays that they had stored up just in case and he will not pay for those extra days in money instead. How do we stand legally? Anyone know? x

[Richard1966]

If it forms part of your statutory holiday entitlement then you should either be allowed to carry it over to the following holiday year or you should be paid for it. Failure to pay you could constitute an illegal deduction of wages. You might want to have informal discussion with your manager before starting formal grievance processes.

[factor-fiction]

I'm not sure I agree with Richard1966. The logic of his argument means that if an employee chooses not to take any of his/her holidays in the year they can then demand to carry them all forward or be paid for them, which is obviously not workable or acceptable.
The employee has an obligation to fit in his holidays according to the holiday rules and can only have a grievance if the employer keeps rejecting holiday requests unreasonably.
In this case I don't follow Le Chat's issue- are you saying you arent allowed to take any more holidays between now and New Year?
If the employer knew you were hanging on waiting for him to decide on closure dates then maybe if he/she is a caring employer they should allow some flexibility on carrying forward.

[Buenchico]

The first point to consider is when your 'working year' actually is. Many employers calculate holiday entitlement based upon a year starting on 1st January and ending on 31st December, but others work on the financial year or use the anniversary of the employee's commencement date as the start of the working year.

However, assuming that your holiday entitlement is calculated on a calendar year, you're entitled to a minimum of 28 days paid holiday (including all 'enforced holidays' such as Christmas Day or other days when the business is closed) during that year. That assumes that you work a 5 day week. Otherwise your entitlement is calculated as 5.6 times the number of days you work each week, but capped at 28 days.

Your employer is obliged by law to ensure that you get the minimum number of days holiday within the current working year. If circumstances prevent you from taking those holidays, you must be permitted to carry those holidays over to the next working year. However such circumstances shouldn't arise through the employer's actions (or lack of them). They'd normally only apply if, for example, you couldn't take your holidays because you were sick.

If, by the end of your working year, you'll have already taken your statutory number of days of paid holiday, then it's contract law (rather than statute law) which applies. You need to read your contract (or 'statement of employment particulars') carefully, to see exactly what the wording says about holidays.

Chris

[Buenchico]

PS: Some relevant links:
http://www.direct.gov...dholidays/DG_10029788

http://www.direct.gov...dholidays/DG_10034711

http://www.acas.org.u...ndler.ashx?id=955&p=0

[Le Chat]

Thanks for all your answers. Factor 30 - As you need to give 1 months notice for holidays, then there is no time to fit them in before the end of the year. Our year goes from end of Dec.
Thanks Chris, will study. x

[factor-fiction]

Okay, but if you had to give a month's notice then hadn't you all left it too late anyway to book holidays over the possible closure period? If you had left enough time, once the employer said it was in fact staying open couldn't you have then requested the holiday?
As you were saving holidays in case the office shut for Christmas i assume that if someone had already taken all their year's holidays you wouldn't have been paid for the closure period.
Anyway, a good flexible employer would show a little flexibility here and let you carry a few days forward. I suggest you all ask for some flexibility. In my experience if the employer is unhelpful he may find people go off sick over Christmas.

[pink-kittens]

I'm just wondering if, as the employee has to give a months notice then surely the employer should as to whether or not he will open during the Christmas period so employees can give their notice to take holidays?

[mike11111]

What you should have done is booked your holidays for the Xmas/New year week at least a month before. If he opens, holidays still booked.If he closes, still on holiday, so no loss.

[Skyline D]

Yes, Mike, I agree. That looked the very obvious thing to have done in the circumstances to me also.

[Le Chat]

Yes Mike, that's what I did and most everyone but of course, he's left with little or no staff, so some of them have to come in! It's complex but have heard he is now paying them...so faith in humanity is not lost!! x

[bushbaby_de]

I wonder where the month in advance figure comes from.... the law says you have to request your holiday in advance by a period at least double the length holiday you wish to take - so two weeks in advance for one weeks holiday for example.