No right royal knees up!

A Lancashire-based floor company have been accused of a "bah humbug" management style after about 400 staff have been told to work on Royal Wedding day, even though the government has declared it a bank holiday. Similarly, a concrete group, based in Somerset, had stopped staff from taking holiday on the wedding day, citing as one reason the number of other bank holidays in April and May. http://tinyurl.com/5to5hpv

There is no statutory right to time off for bank and public holidays and any right to time off or extra pay for working on a bank holiday depends on the terms of an employee's contract of employment. Nonetheless, the government hoped employees would be given the day off to mark the wedding. Naturally in these cases it comes down to what the business wants to do and what an employees’ contract state. Unions has urged employers to offer more incentives on these days, such as double pay or time off in lieu to ensure an employee isn’t getting a too bad of a deal, but again in these times of uncertainty an employer has to make difficult decisions about their bottom line.

The additional bank holiday on Friday 29th April 2011 could present employers with challenges. There will undoubtedly be an increased number of holiday requests. Employers need to have clear policies in place so that they have sufficient staff to run the business and so those refused do not feel demotivated. This is not the only year this problem will occur. On Tuesday 5th June 2012, there will be a special bank holiday in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and so, again, there will be nine bank and public holidays in England and Wales in 2012 instead of the usual eight days.

Warning employees that any sickness absence on the bank holidays will be investigated thoroughly could also deter ‘sickies’ being pulled but we predict that calls to workplace for sudden stomach upsets, colds etc may increase on these newly created bank holidays.