Annual Leave

[Maggie1]

Hello, please would you clarify the current situation regarding taking annual leave. Our employer is insisting that we take a minimum of 50% of our holiday entitlement by the end of August, despite there being nowhere to go. This is also despite us still working and not being furloughed. Does the Government statement regarding able to carry over leave into next year only count for emergency staff, as that's our employers interptretation?

[Amethyst]

No, it applies to everyone xx

Legislation is *http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2.../contents/made
All employers are subject to the Working Time Regulations 1998, and thus will be subject to the changes in the Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020.

Is your annual leave year normally Sept to Sept ? ( just wondering why your employer wants you to take holiday before August ?) Wondering if maybe there's not as much work on and they expect it to pick up after the current situation eases so doesn't want staff on holiday then ? Or maybe I suppose if you take holiday leave on full pay now it saves you being furloughed at 80% ?

[ULA]

There have been changes made with the government due to the current situation which has amended the Working Time Regulations (WTR) so as to allow workers to carry-over up to 4 weeks’ holiday into the next two holiday years. This provision will apply, where at the end of the year it has not been reasonably practicable for a worker to take some or all of this leave as a result of the effects of Coronavirus. This is not just for key workers.

However under the WTR, employers are able to give workers notice requiring them to take their statutory holiday on specified dates, provided such notice is twice the length of the period of leave the worker is being ordered to take (though this can be varied via a worker's contract of employment/engagement). This provision is unchanged by the new regulations so yes, my opinion is that your employer can require you to take 50% of your holiday by the end of August.