Holiday Pay

AVENUE

My Step Son Employs me as a Personal Assistant/Carer. I love this Job and was hoping if someone could answer the following.


With Holidays, I don't actually take the full amount of Time Off that I am entitled too. This is completely Mutual as I prefer to be there supporting him. Is this ok or should I in Law have to actually take the holidays.


Also because of this (again through Mutual Agreement) I don't take extra holiday pay but take a fixed weekly wage which Is how I want it and works for him too. Is this ok too because its a joint agreement to do this.


Many Thanks.

London50

HI, I know nothing in law that state you must take holidays, OK firms do have contracts that state as and when you can take your holidays and have the power to block you going at times but if it suits both you and the person you are caring for I would strongly believe that it is just between the pair of you as to what you want to do.
It IMO is nice to hear in this day and age people that want to choose breaks rather than the ones that bemoan the fact that they are only getting xyz holidays and think they should be entitled to more.

specialboy

As long as you have the opertunity to take your holiday entitlement there is no problem. It's entirely up to you if you choose to take them.

AVENUE

Thanks for that. So is it also ok then for me to have my Holiday Pay paid to me within my usual weekly wage, so that I get the same pay each week.


That again is something we both would prefer so if its a Mutual agreement is that fine, and Legal?


Many Thanks.

jobbingmusician

I don't think it's legal, no. This is called rolled up holiday pay.

https://www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/holiday-pay-the-basics

AVENUE

So would this definitely mean that this isn't allowed even if its mutually agreed between both parties particulary as we are family members too?


I guess if that's the law, then that's that, but can't see why they wouldn't allow this if its mutually convenient or beneficial.


Many Thanks.

London50

OK so perhaps not having it in your pay each week but paid when you "choose" to have your holiday pay but who is to say that your holiday cannot be taken at the place where you are doing the carers job. That way you get your holiday pay but still carry on doing the thing you want to do. Unlike working for a company only you and the person paying you is any the wiser.

General_Grant

AVENUE wrote: »

So would this definitely mean that this isn't allowed even if its mutually agreed between both parties particulary as we are family members too?


I guess if that's the law, then that's that, but can't see why they wouldn't allow this if its mutually convenient or beneficial.


Many Thanks.

You receive whatever your weekly pay is every week. If you take paid leave, you would be paid the same amount as if you worked.

Is the question about including holiday pay in your weekly sum because your Step Son receives a payment which would cover him to pay both you on leave and a replacement carer at the same time? If so, then maybe SS (or whoever provides the funding) would be concerned if a carer were not to take holiday.

AVENUE

Yes, I do take holidays, but usually take them just a few days at a time, usually 3 or 4 days when he goes into Respite Care, this way it means we don't need another carer which is ideally how we both want it.


With not taking full weeks off it looks quite complicated to work out the holiday pay, so we would both find it better to just have a fixed weekly wage to include the holiday entitlement ideally.


Money used to come from a Government Fund to him and that's how we could work it before, but it will now transfer to SS and they will give it to him as a Direct Payment.


Many Thanks.

AVENUE

London50 wrote: »

OK so perhaps not having it in your pay each week but paid when you "choose" to have your holiday pay but who is to say that your holiday cannot be taken at the place where you are doing the carers job. That way you get your holiday pay but still carry on doing the thing you want to do. Unlike working for a company only you and the person paying you is any the wiser.

The only problem with that perhaps is that the money he uses to pay me will shortly start coming from Social Services as a direct payment and we will have to show records of how this is used.


Many Thanks.

LittleVoice

I don't think you have a problem. You don't have to take holiday but when you do you should receive the same pay as if you were working. He just reports having paid you the same amount each week. He shouldn't have to say to SS that it is so much for the time you are actually working and so much when you are on leave.


Though statutory holiday entitlements are described as 5.6 weeks, that equates to 28 days. If you wanted you could take roughly 1 day a fortnight, taking odd days doesn't have to be avoided.