Know your rights

[redken1]

I thought I would post this up as the employer of a friend of mine tried to force him to take holiday leave when he was absent from work due to sickness. Always useful to know your rights.

Workers who fall sick during their annual leave are entitled to take corresponding paid leave at a later date, the EU's top court has ruled.
"The right to paid annual leave cannot be interpreted restrictively," the court says. The UK does not have an opt-out in this area of EU labour law.
The court in Luxembourg said the EU Working Time Directive grants workers a right to at least four weeks' paid annual leave "even where such leave coincides with periods of sick leave".
The ECJ says "the point at which the temporary incapacity arose is irrelevant".
"Consequently, a worker is entitled to take paid annual leave, which coincides with a period of sick leave, at a later point in time, irrespective of the point at which the incapacity for work arose."

If ever in doubt always worth a visit to your local GP to cover yourself.

[Swanny]

Self employed so if I'm ill I don't get anything

[alanTDM]

The court in Luxembourg said the EU Working Time Directive grants workers a right to at least four weeks' paid annual leave "

Does this directive include bank holidays or are they seperate,if not then i only get 21 days paid leave but get paid for the bank hols.

[redken1]

The court in Luxembourg said the EU Working Time Directive grants workers a right to at least four weeks' paid annual leave "

Does this directive include bank holidays or are they seperate,if not then i only get 21 days paid leave but get paid for the bank hols.

I could be wrong Alan – my understanding is 4 weeks (20 days in total) I don’t think there is any statutory obligation for an Employer to pay Bank Holidays. Some may include them and others may pay bank holidays over and above the 4 weeks depending on the employment contract.

I’m no expert on the subject, but there is plenty of info on the directive on the web. This ruling merely sets in stone what was in effect already law.

Hope this helps Alan.

[redken1]

Ignore that last post Alan. I was right about Bank holidays, but wrong about total entitlement. The following was downloaded from directgov site:


There is a minimum right to paid holiday, but your employer may offer more than this. The main things you should know about holiday rights are that:
• you are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks paid annual leave - 28 days for someone working five days a week (capped at a statutory maximum of 28 days for all working patterns)
• part-time workers are entitled to the same level of holiday pro rata (so 5.6 times your usual working week, eg 22.4 days for someone working four days a week)
• you start building up holiday as soon as you start work
• your employer can control when you take your holiday
• you get paid your normal pay for your holiday
• when you finish a job, you get paid for any holiday you have not taken
• bank and public holidays can be included in your minimum entitlement

It appears that the UK minimum entitlement exceeds that of the EU directive. Remember, as a result of the recent EU judgement an employer can’t force you to use your holiday entitlement during sickness leave.