Potential Holiday Blues for British Workers

LONDON - Survey Reveals Nearly a Quarter of Employees Could be Missing
out on Leave

21% of British full-time workers could be danger of not getting the
holidays they are entitled to if their holiday allowance stays the same, says
Croner, the UK’s leading provider of workplace information and consultancy
services.

In a YouGov survey of 2,114 adults commissioned by Croner, nearly a
quarter of full-time workers said that they were entitled to fewer than 27
days holiday per year including bank holidays.

Bosses of the 6% of full-time workers who are currently giving their
staff fewer than 24 days could find themselves in hot water as the
current statutory minimum is 24 days. With that due to increase on 1 April to
28 days, a further 16% of employers of full time workers surveyed will be
failing to meet their legal obligations if they do not increase that
entitlement.

Gillian Dowling, employment technical consultant at Croner, said: “Money
and holidays are often the key motivators when searching for a job and are an
essential part of an employment contract. At the moment it seems not everyone
is aware of their rights. The real danger for employers is when their staff
become more switched on. If they haven’t asked already for the extra holiday,
they will do soon.”

In most circumstances it is a lack of HR knowledge, particularly among
small business owners who don’t have a HR professional on board that has led
to this discrepancy.

“Since the Government first brought in the legislation to increase the
statutory minimum holiday entitlement in 2007, there has been lots of
guidance and information for businesses available through the media and the
internet. However, if you are a small business owner without internal or
external support such as a specialist HR person or a trade association, then
it is very likely that they may not know about it,” comments Gillian.

She adds: “Unfortunately, there are employment law risks if you do not
give the right amount of annual leave. All businesses regardless of their
size have to comply with the statutory minimum holiday entitlement and anyone
unsure of what to do/how to proceed should seek advice from an organisation
such as Croner.”

To help businesses Croner has put together the following guide to
managing holiday entitlement:

1) Increasing the entitlement. If you currently give staff
fewer than 28 days’ paid holiday, an increase will have to be made.

2) Bank holidays. The extra holiday entitlement does not have to be
linked to bank holidays or other fixed days unless the employer wishes.

3) Part-time workers. Part-time workers will be entitled to
holiday on a pro-rata basis, and there will be an overall statutory
maximum holiday entitlement of 28 days even for those workers on a
six-day week.

4) Carrying leave over. The Regulations allow for leave days to be
carried over to the next annual leave year if it is agreed in writing
between the employer and employee in a `legally enforceable agreement’.
This should take the form of a contract of employment, staff handbook or
a separate signed agreement.

5) Paying in lieu of notice. There is no right to be paid in lieu
for any of the holiday entitlement, except on the termination of
employment.

6) Casual staff. The Working Time Regulations which set out the
statutory minimum holiday entitlement apply equally to casual or bank
staff workers as well as employees.

Notes to editors

Gillian Dowling is available for interview. If you would like to speak to
Gillian please contact Clare Moore on the numbers above.

All figures are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2,114 adults to
980 full-time workers. Fieldwork was undertaken between 20 March 2009 and 23
March 2009. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted
and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

About Wolters Kluwer UK

Wolters Kluwer UK, incorporating the core brands, Croner and CCH, is the
UK’s most respected provider of information and consultancy services,
providing a range of smart information tools that help make businesses more
effective and profitable; from online interactive products and CD-ROMs to
books, professional journals and loose-leaf publications.
www.wolterskluwer.co.uk

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer, incorporating the core UK brands Croner and CCH, is a
leading global information services and publishing company. The company
provides products and services globally for professionals in the health,
tax, accounting, corporate, financial services, legal and regulatory
sectors. Wolters Kluwer has annual revenues (2008) of EUR3.37 billion,
maintains operations in over 33 countries across Europe, North America
and Asia Pacific and employs approximately 20,000 people worldwide.
Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Amsterdam. Visit
www.wolterskluwer.com for information about its market positions,
customers, brands and organisation.

Source: Croner

Contact: Clare Moore, Communications Manager, +44(0)1455-897156, clare.moore at cronerconsulting.co.uk; David Wells, Head of Communications, +44(0)20-8247-1169, david.wells at wolterskluwer.co.uk