Carrying forward annual leave

[Barquentine]

I tried to carry forward three days' annual leave I was unable to take last year because of work pressures.
My company had no policy in this in place but my boss said the Working Time Regs make it unlawful for a company to allow an employee to carry forward leave. I argued that this was preposterous & that everywhere else I had worked and everyone else I know is allowed to carry forward. Until I get a chance to check those Regs does anyone happen to know if my boss is technically correct? Thanks

[jen78]

Did they give a practical reason such as that they would have to make other employees work over working time regs in order to facilitate someone carrying leave over?

[factor-fiction]

The WTD would only be an issue if by not taking the 3 days lasy year your company hadn't given you sufficient time off under the WTd. This is unlikely unless your holiday entitlements are near the minimum. But if ou didn't take them it's too late a sthe 12 montsh has passed. Provided you take the minimum required there is no law against carrying forward unused holidays but your company may have a rule not allowing it. You will have a case if they refused to let you take hols but they could try and argue it was just bad time management on your part .

[Whickerman]

Quote:
The Working Time Regulations 1998 give almost every worker the right to four weeks paid holiday per year, or proportionally for part of a year. A full time worker who works 5 days a week will thus be entitled to a minimum of 20 paid days holiday per year (he may of course be entitled to more than this statutory minimum under the terms of his contract). Under the regulations a worker has no right to carry untaken holiday forward to the next year.


http://www.emplaw.co.uk/researchfree-redirecto r.aspx?StartPage=data%2f98nov012.htm

[Skyline D]

Technically (per our contracts) we aren't allowed to carry unused holidays forward.

In practice what usually happens is I go see my boss in the last month and say "I've got these days to take but I've no special desire to take them now and you don't want me to because we're busy. I'm not losing them though. Would you rather I take them now for the sake of it or can I carry them forward?" And then I get to carry them forward.

[THECORBYLOON]

From the Government's BERR website

"Under the Working Time Directive, workers are entitled to take four weeks� paid holiday in any holiday year. As a general rule, the four weeks� holiday should not be carried over to the following leave year, nor should payment in lieu to taking leave be made (except on termination of employment). The increased holiday entitlement is additional to the four weeks� entitlement under the Directive, so there is scope to enable some or all of that leave to be carried over to the following leave year (�carrying over�), or for payment in lieu of taking leave (�buying out�) to be made - until 1 April 2009 when the option for giving payment in lieu ceases.

Contractual entitlement to leave, exceeding the statutory and additional statutory entitlements (4 and 0.8 weeks respectively at present), can be carried over without restriction, as may be provided for by contract."

[Barquentine]

Thank you Corby Loon and for the other replies. I think the angle my boss was taking was the 'general rule' referred to on the BERR website discouraging any of the minimum entitlement being deferred. Otherwise some employees might be pressured into not taking their minimum leave in the 12 month period with a promise to carry it forward. He clearly overstated the legal position though. I will just have to take some extra sick leave. Please don't dob me in.