How businesses should manage Bank Holidays in 2022

This article on how to manage Bank Holidays was first published in People Management on 7 March 2022.

As part of the celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the late May bank holiday will be moved to Thursday 2 June 2022, with an additional one on Friday 3 June 2022. This change may have practical and contractual implications, and it is vital that employers are aware of the relevant regulations.

Notice and practicalities

Employers are likely to face an increased number of requests for holidays around this time with many workers wanting to take advantage of the four-day weekend. Employers should have a clear and consistent holiday request procedure and plan well in advance for potential staffing issues, taking into account where applicable the holiday notice provisions under the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR):

• Workers are required to give notice at least twice the length of the holiday they wish to take
• An employer may refuse a holiday request by serving a counter-notice (notice period must be at least the number of days being refused)
• An employer may give notice ordering a worker to take statutory holiday on specified dates, and notice must be twice the length of the required holiday.

The WTR default notice provisions can be amended or disapplied by a relevant agreement (eg, a written contract, a collective agreement incorporated into the worker’s contract, or a workforce agreement).

Contractual considerations

As well as an entitlement to four weeks’ annual leave under the Working Time Directive (WTD), workers have a right to an additional 1.6 weeks’ annual leave under the WTR (eight days for full-time workers) each year. This represents the number of public holidays in England and Wales, however unless contractually specified there is no obligation to use these days on public holidays. There is no statutory right to time off (paid or otherwise) on any public holiday.

Practical difficulties in managing Bank Holidays

The position of part-time workers in relation to public holidays is not straightforward. There is no statutory right to paid public holidays but employers must ensure that part-time workers still receive 5.6 weeks’ leave, pro-rated in accordance with the hours they work. Some employers only give this benefit on the public holiday if the holiday falls on a day the worker normally works. This can be unfair for those who don’t work on Mondays (when most bank holidays fall).

The question whether an employer should give time off in lieu for missed bank holidays is not addressed in the WTR.

You can read the article in full here or contact one of our employment lawyers if you need legal advice on how to manage Bank Holidays.