Traditionally each year the UK has 8 recognised bank holidays. However, this year the UK will have 9 bank holidays courtesy of the King’s coronation. We thought we would take this opportunity to give you the scoop on bank holidays and Employment Law.

Bank holidays also known as Public holidays started off in 1871 with banks closing across the UK, over time this lead to businesses and schools closing and in turn employees getting some time off. 

As time has moved forward and we have become more of a 24/7 society. We have seen more shops, restaurants, hotels and other businesses opening on a bank holiday. Most public sector organisations are still close on a bank holiday. So we answer some frequently asked questions about employee holiday allowance.

How much holiday are employees allowed to have in the UK?

In the UK all full-time employees are allowed to have a minimum of 28 days of annual leave each year. 

Part-time staff are able to have 28 days pro rata each year.

Part-year workers such as zero-hours workers, casual workers and term-time-only workers can have 5.6 weeks each year. (this entitlement currently starts on day one of working thanks to case caller Harper and Brazel)

Do I have to give an extra holiday days holiday this year because of the King’s Coronation?

Well.. that depends on the wording of the contract (by the way, make sure you have a contract with staff as it is a legal requirement.

If the contract is silent on holiday then it will be assumed that the 28 days include bank holidays. So there would be no additional leave given for the King’s coronation. If you are closed then staff will need to take the day out of their annual leave.

The same applies to contracts that state staff can have 28 days of holiday including bank holidays.

If the contract says something like, 20 days annual leave plus bank holidays then you would need to pay staff for the extra bank holiday this year.

But remember that these are minimums, not maximums. You can always give your staff extra holiday if you choose to.

Do staff get extra pay for bank holidays?

Back in the day, it was common for staff to receive paid incentives to work on a bank holiday. This could be anything from time and half to triple time. This has become less common now.

There is no legal requirement to pay extra on a bank holiday but you can if you wish.

Be mindful that if you do pay extra for bank holidays over a period of time that this could become contractual by conduct.

If I open on a bank holiday do my staff have to work?

Once again, this will depend on the wording of the contract but generally speaking, a bank holiday is a normal day of work if the business is open.

What about staff who don’t usually work on Mondays?

For staff who do not work on a Monday this will be a normal day off. They will be able to have the same annual leave entitlement as everyone else and if that is 28 days of leave then they can take the day sometime later.

We hope you really enjoy your bank holidays, whatever you do. For more help with Employment Law or HR contact us at http://www.orchardemploymentlaw.co.uk

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