The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has dismissed an appeal by an employer, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, against a finding that voluntary overtime should be taken into account when calculating holiday pay.

The 56 council employees in the case were contracted to work for 37 hours a week. Some had a contractual right to work two to four hours of overtime. In addition, the employees also did additional duties on a voluntary basis.

The employees argued that that pay received for these voluntary additional duties, as well as some travel time, should be included in the calculation of their holiday pay to ensure that they are not financially worse off by taking leave.

The EAT decided that there is no distinction between contractually required work the 37 hours and the hours they worked voluntarily. Normal pay levels must be maintained when calculating holiday pay during the four weeks of annual leave provided under EU law. It also found that where voluntary shifts, standby and call-out payments formed part of normal pay they should be included in holiday pay calculations too. Otherwise, the financial disadvantage may deter employees from taking leave.

 

 

FREE first advice

Have you ever wanted to just ask an expert employment law solicitor if they can help you, without worrying about what it may cost to contact them?

Get in touch

We’d like to talk to you to see what we can do to help, so please either call us anytime for free on 08000 614 631, email us or use the form below.

Together we can work out what your next steps might be...in confidence, at no cost and with no obligation.

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE UP TO THE MINUTE EMPLOYMENT LAW AND HR NEWS STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX

* indicates required
McCabe and Co Solicitors will use the information you provide on this form to be in touch with you and to provide updates and marketing. Please let us know all the ways you would like to hear from us:
You can change your mind at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in the footer of any email you receive from us, or by contacting us at philip@mccabeandco.com. We will treat your information with respect. For more information about our privacy practices please visit our website. By clicking below, you agree that we may process your information in accordance with these terms.
We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By clicking below to subscribe, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here.