2.1 Definitions
2.1.1 Contractual leave entitlement means basic annual leave entitlement plus extra-statutory days, plus bank/public holidays, plus concessionary days.
2.1.2 Statutory leave entitlement means 5.6 calendar weeks, in other words 28 days (pro rata for part-time employees). Paid leave taken on extra-statutory days or any bank/public holidays will go towards discharging the council’s liability to grant 5.6 calendar weeks statutory leave per year under the Working Time Regulations 1998. This is the minimum entitlement for employees.
2.1.3 The statutory leave entitlement will not be in addition to the employee’s contractual leave entitlement but the employee can take advantage of whichever right is more favourable.
2.2 Basic entitlement for permanent full-time employees
2.2.1 The basic leave entitlement in a full year of service differs according to the grade of the employee’s post and the length of recognised continuous service. The basic annual leave entitlement for full-time employees is shown in the table below:
| Grade |
Basic entitlement in days (under 5 years' service) |
Basic entitlement in days (5 years' service or more) |
|---|
| Scale 1 to 6 inclusive |
21 |
25 |
| Scale SO1/2 to M8 inclusive |
23 |
25 |
| Scale M7 or above |
26 |
28 |
Note: the figures in the table above do not include the extra-statutory leave entitlement (see section 3).
2.3 Basic entitlement for permanent part-time employees including job-sharing employees
2.3.1 The basic annual leave entitlement for part-time employees will be in proportion to the number of contractual hours worked in a normal week compared with that of a comparable full-time employee.
2.4 Basic entitlement for temporary employees including those employed on fixed-term contracts
2.4.1 Temporary employees are entitled to a basic annual leave entitlement equivalent to that of comparable permanent employees except where the contract, or a part of it, commences and/or terminates part-way through the leave year. In these circumstances, the basic leave entitlement will be awarded on a pro rata basis according to the number of completed months service in the leave year.
2.4.2 Where the temporary employee works part-time, the entitlement to annual leave will also be proportional to the number of hours worked in a normal working week compared with a comparable full-time employee.
2.5 Qualification for long service leave
2.5.1 To qualify for the enhanced rate of annual leave, employees must have completed 5 years’ continuous service under one or more local authorities or other public bodies to which The Redundancy Payments (Continuity of Employment in Local Government etc.) (Modification) Order 1999 applies.
2.5.2 The enhanced rate of annual leave will apply from the date on which the employee completes 5 years’ continuous service. In cases where the fifth anniversary of appointment falls part-way through the leave year, the employee will be entitled to a proportion of the full year’s enhanced entitlement calculated on the basis of the number of complete months remaining in the leave year. The additional annual leave will be expressed in whole days (rounded down where the calculation produces a fraction).
2.6 Accrual of annual leave entitlement
2.6.1 Employees accrue entitlement to annual leave as they accrue continuous service. Entitlement to annual leave continues to accrue even during periods when the employee is not receiving pay, for example during the unpaid period of maternity leave, adoption or parental leave, or when entitlement to occupational sick pay has been exhausted. These examples are illustrative only and should not be regarded as exclusive or exhaustive.
2.6.2 However, where an employee has been granted unpaid leave to enable the individual to travel, undertake a sabbatical etc. he/she will be entitled to accrue statutory leave only during the period of absence. These examples are illustrative only and should not be regarded as exclusive or exhaustive.
2.7 Payment during annual leave
2.7.1 An employee will be paid their normal pay for all authorised absence on annual leave. This means that if they receive contractual payments for working arrangements other than normal office hours, they would be entitled to such payments during such leave.
2.8 Sickness during annual leave
2.8.1 In the event of an employee becoming sick while on annual leave, the absence will only be regarded as sick leave if the employee provides the council with a medical certificate. In cases where a medical certificate is provided, the employee’s annual leave would be suspended from the date of the medical certificate. No such adjustment will be made for employees who have self-certified sickness absence.
2.9 Carry over of annual leave from one leave year to the next
2.9.1 Employees are expected to schedule their taking of annual leave throughout the leave year and to have taken their full entitlement by 31 March.
Statutory leave element
2.9.2 The Working Time Regulations 1998 require that the statutory element of an employee’s leave entitlement (in other words, 28 days for a full-time employee and pro rata for a part-time employee) must be taken in the year to which it relates. This means that statutory leave cannot, under any circumstances, be carried forward to the following leave year.
2.9.3 Employees are not entitled to receive a payment in lieu of any statutory leave which has not been taken by the end of the leave year to which it relates.
Contractual leave element
2.9.4 Where it has not been possible, due to extenuating circumstances (for example, work demands) for an employee to take their full annual leave entitlement before the end of the leave year, an employee may formally request to carry forward up to a maximum of 5 days (pro rata for part-time employees) of their contractual leave entitlement to the next leave year.
2.9.5 Any annual leave in excess of 5 days (pro rata for part-time employees) which is outstanding at the end of the leave year will automatically be lost. Please refer to guidance notes for employees who have been absent due to sickness or a period of maternity or unpaid leave.
2.9.6 The carry forward of annual leave is not an automatic entitlement but requires the express permission of the employee’s supervisor or manager. It will only be granted where the carry over of leave can be accommodated within the needs of the service and will not have a detrimental effect on service delivery.
2.9.7 In cases where leave is carried forward, such leave must be taken by 31 May of the following leave year. Any leave which has been carried forward and remains outstanding by the 31 May deadline will automatically be lost.
2.10 Employees commencing or ceasing employment during the leave year
2.10.1 Employees starting or leaving the council’s employment during the leave year will be entitled to leave proportional to the number of completed months service with the council (see guidance notes) during that leave year (rounded up to the nearest whole day).
Employees commencing employment
2.10.2 Employees transferring from another local authority or other recognised public body to which The Redundancy Payments (Continuity of Employment in Local Government etc.) (Modification) Order 1999 applies will not be permitted to transfer to Brighton & Hove City Council any leave entitlement which may be outstanding at the time their employment ceased with their former authority.
Employees leaving employment
2.10.3 Employees should take any outstanding leave to which they are entitled before their date of leaving. No payment will be made in lieu of any contractual leave not taken by the last day of service except in certain specific circumstances (please refer to the guidance notes).
2.10.4 However, employees who leave the council’s employment (including those dismissed for gross misconduct) will be entitled to a payment in lieu of any statutory leave not taken by the date of leaving and to which they would otherwise have been entitled.
2.10.5 Employees who leave the council having taken more than their leave entitlement will have their final pay adjusted to take account of the additional time taken.
2.11 Employees transferring to a different post/different number of contractual hours during the leave year
2.11.1 In either of these circumstances it will be necessary to re-calculate the employee’s leave entitlement. The employee’s new leave entitlement should be calculated as a proportion of the full year’s entitlement based on the number of completed months that the employee serves in the new post or works the revised hours in the leave year. Please refer to the guidance notes.
