Change to working pattern - Ill Health Grounds

[Milkman007]

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[ULA]

Can i ask what industry you are working in given that unless you have opted out of the Working Time Regulations a 63 hour working week is in contravention of these.

[Milkman007]

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[ULA]

Was there a clause in your contract regarding opting out of the WTRs?

The WTRs state that you can’t work more than 48 hours a week on average - normally averaged over 17 weeks, the only way to work more than this is if you "opt out".

So even before answering your issue I am concerned over a contract of employment that has you working a 63 hour week which is 12.5 hours be day worked over 5 days if you have not opted out of the WTR either via a clause in your contract or a separate agreement.

[Milkman007]

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[ULA]

I would say that working a 54 hour week when you have not opted out of the 48 hour working week WTR's does not make you a part-time employee!
However in regard to your original questions:

1. Holiday entitlement, if you only wanted to work 4 days a week then this would be reduced to 4/5 of your annual holiday entitlement.
2. What is your bonus based on? If it is a sales role is it more commission based against targets and are these going to be adjusted for your new working week?

[Milkman007]

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[ULA]

So i presume they are wanting to make the percentage 4/5ths of its current rate??

Would you/they consider a reduced working day each day so that you are working the new hours over 5 days?

[Milkman007]

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[ULA]

It depends on how hard you want to push the point with your employer but working over 48 hours a week on average over a 17 week period is in contravention of the WTR's unless you have agreed to this and signed an opt out clause.

As you have done this for a long time your employer may argue that you have accepted those hours by agreeing to work them and I presume at the time you signed a contract agreeing to the new hours. If you did you may in theory have agreed to "opt out" of the WTR's in which case you could give at least 7 days notice (in the absence of any other notice period) that you now now wish to work up to 48 hours per week

However if your pay increased when you moved from 36 hours to 63 hours then your employer can argue that a reduction in hours will reduce your pay proportionally.

[Milkman007]

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[ULA]

You're entitled to 5.6 weeks' paid holiday statutory annual leave a year. This 5.6 weeks' legal minimum holiday is usually made up of:

20 days = 4 weeks
+ 8 days (which can be the year's bank holidays) = 1.6 weeks

So if you are given 30 days holiday including bank holidays you are getting more than statutory minimum.

You should also be aware that your employer can determine when you take holiday (providing they give the requisite notice) so if you already know that you have to to take 10 days holiday for these two periods then yes the remaining 20 days will be to cover personnal holiday and the bank holidays outside those over the Christmas period.