Retailers are publishing
their Christmas and New Year trading hours. Tough competition in
the retail sector means that retailers will be looking to open
shops, particularly convenience stores, for more days and trading
for longer hours over the festive period. This year there will be
increased pressure on shopworkers to work for more days and longer
hours over the Christmas period.
Usdaw is lobbying and
negotiating with employers to try to get the longest possible break
for shopworkers, and other workers, over the festive period. The
Union wants shops to close early on Christmas Eve and for all shops
to be closed on Christmas Day. The Union would like to see any
working on the Christmas/New Year Bank Holidays to be voluntary and
to be paid premium pay.
The Union negotiates with
employers against a backdrop of statutory rights that are more
limited than many people think, with workers' rights to time off
during the festive period largely dependent on their contract of
employment and any Trade Union/company agreement.
Remember:
The Union's ability to deliver on this issue will depend on levels
of Usdaw membership and organisation in the workplace. So, if
workers aren't happy with the employer's Christmas working
arrangements get them to join Usdaw.
In my 2011 diary it
says that Monday 26 December and Tuesday 27 December are Bank
Holidays. Am I guaranteed both days off?
No. Bank Holidays are the
days the Government designates as Public Holidays under the Banking
Act. When the traditional Public Holiday falls at the weekend the
Bank Holiday is the substitute date for workers in Monday-to-Friday
businesses. For businesses that operate seven days a week, such as
the retail and distribution sector, the customary holiday is
sometimes kept to the traditional date. The arrangements for
assigning the date of the customary holiday are different in each
business.
There is no legal right to
take paid time off on a Public Holiday or to receive premium
payments for working on such a holiday.
Your position in relation to
working on a Public/Bank Holiday will depend on what is outlined in
your contract of employment, staff handbook and if there is a
Union/company agreement.
Is Bank Holiday
working voluntary?
For some workers working on
a designated Public Holiday is voluntary; for others working on
some or all Public Holidays is part of your contract. The position
on whether Public Holiday working is voluntary is usually explained
in your contract, the staff handbook or outlined in agreements
between the employer and the Trade Union.
Am I entitled to
premium payments if I work on a Bank Holiday?
There is no automatic right
to premium pay for working on a Bank Holiday. The pay rate for
working these days depends on your contract of employment and
Union/company agreements. The pay rates and any days that attract
premiums are usually explained in the staff handbook or in other
communication to staff.
I don't usually work
on Mondays and Tuesdays. Will I be entitled to time off in
lieu?
Again, this depends what is
outlined in your contract of employment, staff handbook and if
there is a Union/company agreement. In many businesses individual
worker's Bank Holidays is incorporated into the annual leave
entitlement. The last Labour Government increased the minimum
statutory holiday entitlement from 20 days to 28 days to take into
consideration the 8 main Bank Holidays.
Will Saturday 24
December be a normal working day?
Yes. Christmas Eve is a
normal working day and staff may be required to work their normal
working hours. Usdaw is urging businesses to close their doors
early to allow staff to get home to spend Christmas Eve with their
family and friends.
Have retail staff
the legal right to three days off at Christmas?
There is no automatic legal
right to paid time off on Public Holidays. Your right to time off
will depend on what is in your contract of employment, the staff
handbook and whether the Union has been able to negotiate
improvements with your employer.
Do the shops have to
shut early on Christmas Eve?
No, they don’t. In much of
the retail sector Christmas Eve is a contractually normal working
day and staff may be required to work their normal working hours.
Usdaw is urging retailers to finish early on Christmas Eve to allow
workers to get home so they can spend the evening with their
families and friends. Finishing work after 4pm on Christmas Eve
makes it difficult for many workers to get home as public transport
transfers to holiday service. The Union believes transport
difficulties must be taken into account when retailers consider the
hours employees are expected to start and finish work and should,
if necessary, support staff who face problems getting to and from
work.
Do part-time workers
get treated differently to full-time workers in relation to Public
Holidays?
No. Part-time workers will
get the same Bank Holiday entitlements, on a pro-rata basis, as
their full-time colleagues.
My company
designates Monday 26 December as a Public Holiday. I don’t normally
work Monday, do I get paid as if I had worked or
do I miss out?
Not necessarily. There is no
guarantee or automatic right that you get paid and it will depend
on what is outlined in your contract of employment, staff handbook
or Union/company agreement.
I work full-time. In
the week commencing Monday 26 December do full-time workers get
paid overtime if they work more than four days?
Not necessarily. Again, this
will depend on what is outlined in your contract of employment,
staff handbook and if there is a Union/company agreement.