Holiday entitlement

Md56cx

Hello,

I'm looking for some advice please. 
We have received this letter from my company HR. Telling us about our holiday entitlement for the year. This includes changes to our annual leave. None of the staff have been informed about any of these changes only by recieving this letter. 
If someone could please clarify this because I'm just wondering where I stand with all of this. 
I uploaded a copy of the letter, that I have received. 

Best Regards

juraj.kecso

Hi,

Can you please explain what exactly you mean by changes to your annual leave? Are you being given fewer days to be taken this year?

Md56cx

We have book 60% of annual leave by a certain date, otherwise they can allocate it for us at any given time or loose it completely. 

comeandgo

Md56cx said:

We have book 60% of annual leave by a certain date, otherwise they can allocate it for us at any given time or loose it completely. 

And the problem is?

Md56cx

The problem his, it is near impossible to book time off, due to how many staff can be off at one time. We are asked to take annual leave on the day we work without any notice, while we are there. Instead of doing a full day only half of one. 

juraj.kecso

The 60% by September looks a bit iffy, but otherwise I really cannot see a problem. I can imagine that your company is trying to prevent a situation where at the end of February everyone suddenly realises that they still have loads of AL to be taken.

You simply need to make sure you have taken all of your AL throughout the year.

Md56cx

I know at the end of annual leave year.
It sometimes does get a little bit crazy.
Thank you for the reply and help.

Undervalued

Md56cx said:

The problem his, it is near impossible to book time off, due to how many staff can be off at one time. We are asked to take annual leave on the day we work without any notice, while we are there. Instead of doing a full day only half of one. 

Unless you have contractual arrangements that say otherwise an employer can totally dictate when an employee must take their leave. Strangely there is no legal right to choose when you take your holiday or "book" annual leave.

They do however have to give notice of twice the length of the leave they are requiring you to take. 

Taken to extreme, the firm could close for 28 days per year and allow no other time off at all! So, the letter you received is still allowing you considerably more flexibility that they are obliged to do.

Md56cx

Thank you for help Undervalued.

getmore4less

Lets assume end of Sept  that's 50% of the year(6months April to Sept) to use 60% of the holiday


That should not be that difficult, if the reason for the imbalance is workloads tend to be higher in the 25% of the year Jan to March where only 1 weeks can be taken(<18%)

That leaves ~22% to be taken in the other 25% of the year.


I would  ask for clarification that as long as you have requested your 60% you won't lose it if the company cannot accommodate its own rules.


AS the law allows for the company to allocate all holidays  this just clarifies their approach.


The key is the letter basically says these are the guidelines to assist managers and workers to administer the holidays) but everything is up for negotiation.


IF it were me I would consider changing the holiday year to avoid the end of holiday year in the busy period where any untaken holiday conflicts with the business.

potentially have a carry over option that must be used in the first 3 months might assist if the the 60%

getmore4less

Md56cx said:

The problem his, it is near impossible to book time off, due to how many staff can be off at one time. We are asked to take annual leave on the day we work without any notice, while we are there. Instead of doing a full day only half of one. 

there are two issues there.

1. does it really conflict with the policy or not,  would need more information of work patterns and no op people etc.  (see below)
2. there are statutory rules on notice but these can be overridden by contract so if the contract allows for no notice
   that letter does say the manager can allocate but does not give notice requirements, is that anywhere else otherwise statutory notice applies.

Looking at the issue of  no of people off and a 60% rule in 6 months using 30 days total holiday 5 day week for 26 weeks.

If only 1 person is allowed off 

60% is 18 days  and 26 weeks is 130 work days you need to have under 7.2 FTE in the holiday pool where only one can be off before it becomes a problem


if relaxed to 2  people in quiet periods that's 3.6 FTE

how many in the holiday pool?