Business Articles

18th September 2007
Robinsons Solicitors

Companies warned to prepare for holiday law change

Stephen Woolley, Head of Employment Law and Dispute Resolution at Derby based Law Firm Robinsons Solicitors.

Companies are being urged to re-examine their staff's terms and conditions of employment to make sure they comply with new laws that will give millions of workers more annual leave.

Currently, workers are entitled to a minimum holiday entitlement of 20 days, but from October 1, new Working Time Regulations will come into force which will raise the minimum number of statutory holiday days from 20 to 24, ahead of a further change in April 2009 that will increase the total to 28 holiday days.

Many employers already award paid bank and public holidays as additional holiday, thus already giving workers at least 28 days paid holiday each year, and the law change will eventually bring all businesses into line.

Stephen Woolley, Head of Employment Law and Dispute Resolution at Derby-based law firm Robinsons Solicitors, said the changes will mean that millions of employees will be entitled to days off that other workers take for granted.

However, the additional holidays do not have to be taken on bank or public holidays, meaning that an employer can require workers to work on bank or public holidays so long as the overall paid leave entitlement complies with the new regulations.

Stephen Woolley added: "Employers should take this opportunity to re-examine workers terms and conditions of employment in order to ensure compliance with the new regulations.

"There is also a possible trap for unwary employers in that a contractual provision entitling workers to all statutory and public holidays could, conceivably, be interpreted as entitling workers not to 24, or even 28, but to 36 statutory days of holiday.

"Similarly employers presently contractually providing 20 days paid holiday plus bank holidays may need to consider amending such contracts to ensure it is made absolutely clear that bank holidays are included within the new paid statutory holiday."

Stephen Woolley also reminds employers that October 1 will bring an increase in the National Minimum Wage, thus entitling adult workers to £5.52 per hour; workers aged 18-21 £4.60 per hour and workers aged 16-17 to £3.40 per hour.