can my employer force me to book annual leave?

MrsTinks

My staff can put in for their christmas holiday already, it won't be approved until september time but marked in order that it comes in and if we get more than 5 requests they are advised that chances of getting it off are very low. First come first serve although people who had it off last year would be less likely to get it than say someone who didn't get their christmas off last time. During the rest of the year I only allow 2 people off on holiday at any one time which makes me highly unpopular but I have to provide a certain level of staffing at all times so tough luck - first come first serve...

Daisies

At least if you book it now when they send forms out you've got it booked. My other half forgot to book his leave until too late last year (everyone else had got the last remaining days) and couldn't carry it over so lost 6 days!

Phoenix79_2

ejones999 wrote:

Where I work you have to take 2 weeks main holidays in one go.
It is because I work in a bank and if I was on the fiddle it would be a lot more difficult to hide things if I was not there for 10 working days on the trot.

Same here. Have to have 10 working days off in a row. For 'fraud' reasons apparently. We can pretty much decide when we want to have time off though.

Xh2oX

On a similar note can employers tell you when you cannot take holidays??

Some parts of the year is busy where i work and we are told we cannot have a/l during the peak times which can run into a couple of months or more. Can they do this?

Daisies

When I worked for a university we weren't allowed to take annual leave during term time because it was so busy. It wasn't in our contracts though, just discouraged as it would have been unfair on others. You were allowed to take the odd day here or there (eg to go to a wedding) but you couldn't take a week or more.

Mikeyorks

Xh2oX wrote:

On a similar note can employers tell you when you cannot take holidays??

Some parts of the year is busy where i work and we are told we cannot have a/l during the peak times which can run into a couple of months or more. Can they do this?

Yes, they can do that. It will stipulate in your contract / support documentation that granting of A/L is dependent on business needs. But where an employer has to specify 100% attendance over a period (which they won't get because of sick leave etc) - they will normally relax attendance levels at non-peak periods to below the norm level in order you're not put in the situation of having problems using your annual entitlement.

lamb7994

Xh2oX wrote:

On a similar note can employers tell you when you cannot take holidays??

Some parts of the year is busy where i work and we are told we cannot have a/l during the peak times which can run into a couple of months or more. Can they do this?

Yes and as my employer would put it "we work for the needs of the business" and basically when business is quieter we are encouraged to take time off. Were encouraged to take time off over christmas although none of us do.


James

LittleVoice

Xh2oX wrote:

On a similar note can employers tell you when you cannot take holidays??


The Working Time Directive includes regulations about paid holidays. This includes minimum notice to be given to your employer in relation to how long you want off. It also covers their right to turn down your request.

Writing from memory - employers and workers can agree how and when to give notice of when leave is to be taken but, in the absence of such agreement, the regulations specify this. The regulations include provison for you to give your employer at least twice the period of the leave to be taken. Your employer can refuse permission for you to take the leave and this has to be done within a period equivalent to the period of the leave.

For example, if a worker wants to take two days leave, he or she would need to give their employer at least four days notice. Continuing with the example, if the worker has given the employer these four days notice that they want to take two days leave, the employer can come back within two days to refuse the leave.

jamesd

See Section 7 of the Working Time Regultions.