Can I get an extra day off in lieu because a bank holiday is falling on a day I'd get off anyway?

mowg

I work a shift pattern that often covers weekends. When I work a weekend it usually means I get the following Monday off to ensure that I don't go over my contracted weekly hours.

My employment contract states that I am entitled to 20 days annual leave plus bank holidays a year. When a bank holiday falls on one of the mondays that I happen to be off (due to having worked the weekend) am I able to ask for that bank holiday to be credited back to me as a day off in leiu? Otherwise it feels as though my employer isn't giving me my full annual leave allowance? Any advice would be appreciated.

Bradden

what does your contract say?

mowg

Bradden said:

what does your contract say?

It says that I am "entitled to 20 days annual leave plus bank holidays a year." It doesn't say much more than that on the subject.

Bradden

Are you a full time emplyee? I think it get more complicated if you work part time... as it depends on whether you normally work on a monday.

mowg

Yes. Full time. 40 hours per week. I just can't help but think that by not being credited with an extra day in leiu because I'm a shift worker and get mondays off due to working weekends I'm being screwed.

elsien

If the Monday is down as a bank holiday then would that not take you over your hours anyway, automatically giving you more time back elsewhere? What is your employer's response when you asked the question?

So for example your shifts for the B/H week are Wed- Sun covering 40 hours. Plus 8 hours BH on the Monday is 48 hours  -what are they going to do with the extra 8 hours?
However when I worked shifts my employer's policy did cover this, so you need to check your leave policy in  more detail. 

You're presuming that they're going to take advantage when from what you've said you don't seem to know what the usual position is. 

mowg

elsien said:

If the Monday is down as a bank holiday then would that not take you over your hours anyway, automatically giving you more time back elsewhere? What is your employer's response when you asked the question?

So for example your shifts for the B/H week are Wed- Sun covering 40 hours. Plus 8 hours BH on the Monday is 48 hours  -what are they going to do with the extra 8 hours?
However when I worked shifts my employer's policy did cover this, so you need to check your leave policy in  more detail. 

You're presuming that they're going to take advantage when from what you've said you don't seem to know what the usual position is. 

The way they do it is that if I work 40 hours one week including the weekend they will automatically give us the Monday off as a rest day. They will then rota us in to do another 40 hours the following week that does not include the weekend but could include a few 12 hour days to make up the full weekly hourly total. This is all fine when it's not on a weekend that comes before or after a bank holiday. But when one of us gets a Monday off becaue we've just worked a weekend that happens to be a bank holiday all my colleagues who weren't scheduled to work that weekend are getting a day off more than the person who did.

I certainly do intend to raise this with my line manager and HR but I just wanted to see if anyone knew of a legal angle that might go in my favour. Perhaps there's some legislation somewhere that could help? Or might this even be a breach of contract as my contract says that I am entitled to bank holidays off on top of my yearly annual leave allowance, yet this rota means fewer days off than contractually entitled to?

elsien

I'm confused. If the Monday is booked as bank holiday hours, then you must be getting time off somewhere else instead otherwise it would be more than a 40 hour week? 

mowg

elsien said:

I'm confused. If the Monday is booked as bank holiday hours, then you must be getting time off somewhere else instead otherwise it would be more than a 40 hour week? 

Yes sorry. My mistake. My explanation was very poorly worded. By trying to make it easier to understand I just made it more complicated than it needed to be.

On the week where I'm working a weekend I am doing extra hours and then the following week those hours will be taken off. But overall throughout the working month all my hours are accounted for. I get no time off. Therefore I lose out when my weekend is before a bank holiday.

General_Grant

Simple.

You are a full-time employee and presumably your 40 hours/week are spread over 5 days.  So your statutory entitlement is to 28 days (5.6 weeks is the actual entitlement).  

Your employer offers 20 days plus BHs.  Normal calendar years have 8 BHs - it can vary if holiday year starts in April because of Easter being a movable feast.  So they are allowing for you to have your statutory entitlement.

If they don't want you to work more than your contracted hours in any week and yet have your minimum holiday entitlement (that entitlement being your statutory right), they need to allow for the compensatory time off to be transferred from the BH Monday to another time.

mowg

General_Grant said:

If they don't want you to work more than your contracted hours in any week and yet have your minimum holiday entitlement (that entitlement being your statutory right), they need to allow for the compensatory time off to be transferred from the BH Monday to another time.

Thank you. When you say they need to allow for compensatory time off, is there a legal point that can be used to compel them too if they do not? For instance would it be a breach of contract if they didn't? Or is there some employment legislation buried somwhere that could compel them? I'm hoping it won't come to that. They're not a bad employer overall so I'm guessing it's just an oversight they'll put right once it's pointed out to them, but just in case.