Summer Holidays: Are You Entitled For Holidays This Year?

A few days ago, Ryanair forecasted that there would be a strong return for beach holidays this summer.

After a truly challenging year, airline companies would be happy to welcome back travellers. So could this be the return of the summer holiday for summer 2021? Well, we won’t know just yet. This is all reliant on the success of the government vaccination program. So would any of you risk going on a summer holiday this year, we’d love to know. Pop you answer in the comments down below.

What happens to your employees holiday entitlement during coronavirus?

Everybody that works, including those on zero hour contracts are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday per year. The statutory 5.6 weeks entitlement is split into 4 weeks an additional 1.6 weeks from UK law. Dependent on your contract with your employer, you could have additional paid holiday entitlement. You will have the same holiday entitlement even if you’re on statutory leave.

Can I Accrue Holidays Whilst On Furlough?

If you have been placed on furlough, you can still continue to accrue statutory holiday entitlements. Please see the governments holiday entitlement calculator to work out your statutory holiday entitlement.

Those on furlough can take holidays without disrupting their furlough payments. In this instance, an employer can require a worker to take leave. If an employer requires a worker to take holiday whilst on furlough, they should consider whether the employee can rest, relax and enjoy their ‘holiday’.

If a bank holiday falls inside a workers period of furlough and the worker would have usually worked the bank holiday, their furlough will be unaffected. However if the employee would have usually had the holiday as annual leave then there’s two options you can take.

• The Bank Holiday is taken as annual leave. If the employee tales the bank holiday as annual leave, then the employer must pay the correct holiday pay for the worker.
• The Bank Holiday Is Deferred. If the bank holiday isn’t taken as annual leave, the employee must receive the day of annual leave that they would have received under normal circumstances.

If the employer and the worker agree that the bank holiday will not be taken as annual leave at that time, the worker must still receive the day of annual leave that they would have received.

What Will I Get Paid?

An employer should not automatically pay a worker on holiday the rate of pay that they are receiving while on furlough. If a worker on furlough takes annual leave, an employer must calculate and pay the correct holiday pay in accordance with current legislation.

Carrying holidays into the future

The 5.6 weeks of holiday are split into 4 weeks and 1.6 weeks. The 1.6 weeks can be carried forward into the following leave year if a written agreement exists between the worker and the employer. Generally, the 4 weeks cannot be carried into future leave years. The employers must facilitate these weeks being taken within the relevant leave year

However, due to the current situation, employers must allow the 4 weeks to be carried into future leave years. If a worker cannot take annual leave due to them being on maternity leave or sick, employers must still allow workers to carry their annual leave forwards.

Under the new government legislation, workers can carry forward their holiday due to the effects of the coronavirus. If it has not been reasonably practicable for the worker to take some or all of the 4 weeks’ holiday due to the effects of coronavirus, the untaken amount may be carried forward into the following 2 leave years.

How Ampios Can Help?