Page 28 - Workplace Relations Guide to Employment Law

of working, employees must not lose out The time at which annual leave may be
on rest. In these circumstances rest may be taken is determined by the employer
postponed temporarily and taken within a having regard to work requirements, and
reasonable period of time subject to the employer taking into account
the need for the employee to reconcile
work and family responsibilities, and the
Holidays opportunities for rest and recreation
available to the employee.
Holiday pay is earned against time worked.
All employees, full-time, part-time, temporary The Organisation of Working Time Act
or casual earn holiday entitlements from provides that the employees concerned or
the time work is commenced. Note that, their trade unions are consulted at least 1
for the purposes of determining holiday month in advance of the dates selected
entitlements, a day on which an employee by the employer for annual leave. The
was on a certified absence due to illness is employee’s annual leave must be taken
deemed to be a working day . 3 within the leave year to which it relates
or, with the employee’s consent, within 6
The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 months of the next leave year. Where the
provides that most employees are entitled to employee is, due to certified absence due to
4 weeks annual holidays for each leave year illness, unable to take all or part of the leave
with pro-rata entitlements for periods of during that period of 6 months, that leave
employment of less than a year. In the case may be taken within 15 months of the end
4
of employees working a normal 5 day week of that leave year .
this would work out at 1.66 days per month
worked or 20 days. The pay for the annual leave must be given
in advance of the commencement of the
Depending on time worked, employees’ employee’s annual leave, and is calculated at
holiday entitlements should be calculated by the normal weekly rate.
one of the following methods:
Where an employee ceases to be employed
(i) 4 working weeks in a leave year in which and annual leave remains to be taken, the
the employee works at least 1,365 hours employee should receive compensation for
(unless it is a leave year in which he or the loss of any untaken leave calculated
she changes employment). at the normal weekly pay rate or at a rate
(ii) 1/3 of a working week per calendar proportionate to the normal weekly pay rate
month that the employee works at least that he/she would have received had he/she
117 hours. been granted that leave.
(iii) 8% of the hours an employee works in a
leave year (but subject to a maximum of
4 working weeks).

3 See Section 19(1)(A) of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 (as inserted by Section 86(1)(a) of the Workplace
Relations Act 2015)
4 See Section 20(1)(c) of the 1997 Act (as inserted by Section 86(1)(b) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015

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