No holiday unless working overtime?

[Station336]

So at my current job there is a problem with hours, basically there are not enough people working and our manager is always short for hours at the end of the month.

She recently started getting in trouble for that from the regional manager and they both came up with a plan. Today all the employees were told that unless we take overtime and unless we cover other people shifts when they are sick, we will not be given any holidays even though we are entitled to 24 days of paid holiday.

We have also been told that if we can't find someone to cover us if we take a holiday, then again we will not be given any days off.

Isnt this against the law to force us to work overtime and cover other people to be granted a holiday?

The manager and the regional manager are the only line of contact so if I'm going to be refused holidays because I didn't work overtime I don't know where to take it further.

Thanks!

[ULA]

Under the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR), individuals should normally only be required to give a notice period of twice as long as the leave that they intend to take (e.g. to ask to take a week's holiday two weeks in advance). However, it is not unusual for holiday entitlements to be subject to the operational requirements of the organisation. Check what your contract says in regard to booking holiday.

Given the above you have a statutory right to take annual leave as long as you follow the rules, and you are likely to have an employment tribunal claim if your employer frustrates your ability to take your holiday. In this case your managers are potentially putting in excessive “hurdles such as overtime and covering other people’s absence” before granting holiday.

Do you have an HR department you could speak to?