Is it ok for boss to ask why I want time off?

sujman

Link to holiday rights. Also see further link "taking your holiday" about a 1/4 down the page.

Dont think employers can have policies that override your basic rights.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/Timeoffandholidays/DG_10029788

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/Timeoffandholidays/DG_10034711

Fluffi

sujman wrote: »

Link to holiday rights. Also see further link "taking your holiday" about a 1/4 down the page.

Dont think employers can have policies that override your basic rights.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/Timeoffandholidays/DG_10029788

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/Timeoffandholidays/DG_10034711

If you want to take holiday (from Direct.gov.uk)
"You must give your employer advance notice that you want to take holiday. This notice should be at least twice as long as the amount of holiday you want to take. For example, you should give two weeks' notice for one week's holiday.
Your employer can refuse permission for your holiday as long as they give you notice which is at least as long as the holiday requested. So to refuse a request for a week's leave, they would have to tell you a week in advance.
Your contract may set out other rules about when you can take your holiday. This is allowed so long as the rules don't effectively prevent you from taking holiday at all."

So if your contract says you have to give more than a week's notice for holiday then its not completely unreasonable to give a reason to your boss if you want to break the terms of your contract!

In some jobs you can't take any holiday in December & January or the first week of each month and that is set out in the contract too. Here it clearly states that an employer can control when you take your holiday as long as they don't prevent you from taking it completely ... so it pays to co-operate!

chris1973

It must be a nightmare line managing these obnoxious awquard people.

Its also a nightmare working for them!.

Of course, some line managers don't have double standards and 'favourite members of staff' do they? and of course others don't operate on a principle that there aren't one set of rules for some people and a completely different set for others.

I used to work for company who, some hours after you had phoned in sick, also routinely phoned again to 'double check' during an unpaid sick day to make sure that you were at home!

The same company also used to question some employees as to the reason why they wanted to take a days holiday and state it on their holiday request slips, whilst others can come and go as they pleased taking time off with a day's notice to go to their kids' nativity plays whilst others desperately needing the time to arrange funerals or to run relatives suffering from terminal illnesses to appointments 200 miles away, had to run the gauntlet by kissing their managers' backsides and begging to be allowed one solitary day off from their extremely generous 21 day annual allowance. But I guess thats okay with you is it?, sure!, just another day walking the line.

Of course, some line managers don't get a big thrill and a hitler complex about being able to rule power over their underlings do they, and non would ever abuse that trust and position would they?. Oh Noooooooooo. Obviously not in Anihilator's world, which must be damn perfect.

If the OP is the type of person who isn't prone to taking short notice time off, or taking sick days then I don't see what business it is of anybody elses, whether an employer or not. Taking up employment doesn't give up the right to some level of privacy or dignity or to have their personal business monitored.

What next?, employers ringing up at weekends to see what you are doing?. If a days leave is available and requested then that period becomes your time, and not your employers, so what you do with it, is your business, not theirs.

Isn't the other 40+ weeks that we are present and working for them enough?.

I also think the attitude of the manager doing the asking is also unethical and actually counter productive, somebody who is subject to a third degree inquisition every time they genuinely want a days holiday, may in future just decide instead to ring in sick and avoid all of the hassle.

Reggie_Rebel

robredz wrote: »

There goes the time off for that other job interview you don't want them to know about then. Anihilator would be a nightmare as a line manager.

Then you lie.

"I'm going to have my scrotum waxed"

will end the conversation

Zazen999

Reggie_Rebel wrote: »

Then you lie.

"I'm going to have my scrotum waxed"

will end the conversation

Especially if you are a girl. :rotfl:

Pete111

Fluffi wrote: »

Even if work isn't busy or short staffed most companies have a policy of having to give more than just a few day's notice for a day off. For me its 4 weeks notice - my line manager can authorise holiday if I don't give enough notice but only if for a good reason - so they have to ask why I want the time off - if I'm going to a medical appointment, funeral etc then they will authorise it!

I don't think a manager should be disciplined for asking why you want a holiday if you are asking for it in the next week, either its something that hass come up urgently like a medicial appt etc or you've been disorganised and you should have requested it a lot earlier. They are actually trying to help you and trying to grant the holiday - as liney says would you rather they said "No". Because if they just grant short notice holiday for no reason for you then they'll have to do so for everyone else!

Thank goodness - with that sort of benchmark for dragging someone over the coals I don't think there would be any managers left!



In answer to the OP's Q No, you don't have to tell her but on the other hand, she doesn't have to grant it.

For all you know perhaps several colleagues want the same day off and she has to take a call who 'needs' it and who 'wants' it. Equally she may just be new/nervous/taking an interest but either way congrats for jumping to conclusions with such alacrity.