Annual Leave & Holiday Pay

Every worker in Great Britain whether full time, part time, temporary, seasonal or casual has the legal right under The Working Time Regulations to 5.6 weeks paid holiday leave each year. The right also extends to agency temps although not to workers who are genuinely on business on their own account. Similar provisions apply in Northern Ireland.

The entitlement to 5.6 weeks annual paid leave came into effect in April 2009 and as such is equivalent to 28 working days per annum in the case of someone engaged to work a five day week. Pro-rata entitlements apply to those engaged on part time work.  The amount of holiday leave to which a worker is entitled also stands to be pro-rated if the worker works less than the full holiday year e.g. in the year of joining or in the year of leaving the organisation.

Note that in circumstances where an employee works 6 days per week, the annual holiday entitlement is capped at 28 days.

The 5.6 weeks statutory entitlement may include bank or public holidays where employees are granted paid time off on these days.

No minimum period of qualifying service is required for a worker to become entitled to paid holidays.

The statutory entitlement to paid holidays under the regulations is not additional to any existing contractual entitlement to annual holidays. It follows that a workers statutory entitlement may be offset against contractual entitlement so long as the total entitlement is at least 5.6 weeks.