With the Royal Wedding fast approaching some employers have still not finalised their arrangements. Some employers will be closing through choice and giving all their employees an additional paid day off, others are closing and asking their employees to take it out of their holiday allowance and others are simply not closing at all. The confusion is bound to come up again in just over 12 month’s time when England enjoys another bank holiday to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee on 5th June 2012. What is the right approach?
What most people, employers and employees alike, forget is that there is no free standing right to take a bank or public holiday off. Anyone working such a day would be entitled to take the time off at another point in the leave year.
There are only 8 bank holidays in England and Wales, although other holidays can be declared to mark special occasions, as is the case with the Wedding and Jubilee. The only obligation on employers is to comply with the Working Time Regulations and give all full time employees 28 days holiday.
If the wording of an employee’s contract states that they are entitled to “20 days holiday plus all other bank and public holidays”, employers may need to foot the bill of an additional day off.
If the wording simply states that they are entitled to “28 days holiday per year” or if the contract lists the 8 “normal” bank holidays, that employee will not be entitled to an additional paid day off. They can of course request to take the day off the same as any other day’s holiday.
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