Annual Leave Policy (Non-Medical Staff)

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1 Annual Leave Policy (Non-Medical Staff) Controlled document This document is uncontrolled when downloaded or printed. Reference number Version 2 Author & Job Title Ratified by HR042 Date ratified May 2015 Committee/individual responsible Issue date June 2015 Review date June 2017 Target audience Key Words Christine Taylor, HR Advice Centre Manager Joint Consultative Committee Joint Consultative Committee All WHHT employees Annual leave, holiday, Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 1 of 18

2 Contribution List Key individuals involved in developing this version of the document Name Christine Taylor Designation HR Advice Centre Manager Approved by Committee July 2015 Change History Version Date Author Reason 1 April 2013 Caroline Lankshear Policy creation 2 May 2015 Christine Taylor Inclusion of TOIL Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 2 of 18

3 CONTENTS 1 Introduction 4 2 Objectives 4 3 Scope 4 4 Equality and Diversity Statement 4 5 Roles and Responsibilities 5 6 Definitions 5 7 Annual Leave Entitlements 6 8 Bank Holiday Entitlements 6 9 Public Holidays 7 10 Reckonable Service 7 11 Leave Allowance Based on Length of Service 7 12 Annual Leave Authorisation 8 13 Carry Forward of Annual Leave 9 14 Leave Allowance and Sickness Absence 9 15 Unpaid Leave Time Off in Lieu Other Types of Leave Evaluation Measures Monitoring and Audit References Related Policies Review of this Policy Equality Impact Assessment Policy and Procedure Sign-off Sheet 13 APPENDICES Appendix 1 - Annual leave chart Appendix 2 - How to calculate annual leave inclusive of bank holidays for an employee starting part way through the year Appendix 3 - Annual leave request form Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 3 of 18

4 1 INTRODUCTION The Trust considers annual leave to be important for the well-being of employees and recognises that by securing regular breaks from work this can help employees maintain a positive work-life balance, as well as ensuring that they have sufficient time to rest and reenergise. The Trust encourages all employees to make full use of their annual leave allowance and will support all colleagues to take their entitlements. 2 OBJECTIVES This policy is intended to clarify the annual leave and bank / public holiday entitlements for employees. The Trust is committed to ensuring that all employees receive their fair entitlement to annual leave, and the aim of this policy is therefore to confirm how much annual leave employees should receive based on their contracted hours as well as entitlements for bank and public holidays, and how such leave should be requested and documented. 3 SCOPE This policy applies to all Trust employees employed on Agenda for Change terms and conditions. 4 EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY STATEMENT It is the policy of the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust to provide an Annual Leave Policy that ensures appropriate and equitable responses to employee requests for annual leave in an efficient and fair manner. This document takes into account current employment legislation and must be implemented in conjunction with the Trust s Equal and Human Rights Policy and equality and diversity legislation: Equality Act 2010 Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 Employment Rights Act 1996 Human Rights Act 1998 Part-time Workers Directive 1999 EU Directives and Legislation This policy has also been developed in consideration to the Trust values that underpin everything we do as an organisation. In particular, writing of this policy has involved specific attention being made to ensure the values of involving others, being transparent, demonstrating leadership, being proud, working in partnership, and adding value are incorporated into the content. Managers have a particular responsibility to ensure their management practices do not discriminate in the provision of their service or in the employment of staff. The Trust monitors and publishes information on the profile of its workforce based on age, disability, ethnicity, gender and marital status and appropriate actions will be taken by the Equality & Diversity Group to identify and address any problems. Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 4 of 18

5 5 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 5.1 Line Manager Responsibilities To ensure that employees are aware of the Annual Leave Policy To maintain accurate records of employee annual leave To calculate their employees entitlement at the start of the annual leave year To ensure employees are taking their leave at appropriate intervals during the year thus promoting a good work life balance and wellbeing To ensure that departments are appropriately staffed by not allowing too many employees to take annual leave at once To ensure the administration of annual leave is efficient and equitable To ensure employees do not carry over annual leave from one leave year to the next To monitor the levels of time off in lieu that employees are accruing and ensuring that accumulations are in accordance with this policy 5.2 Employee Responsibilities To plan and take annual leave at regular intervals during the year in co-ordination with their team and with the agreement of their line manager. To request annual leave in a timely manner in accordance with local guidelines and to recognise that leave may not be granted if insufficient notice is given or if there would be a detrimental impact on the service To request in writing when seeking to take more than 2 weeks off together via the senior manager To not book holidays or make deposits / arrangements for holidays until the annual leave has been approved To ensure that their annual leave entitlement is correct and in line with their NHS entitlement / years of service All clinical staff will be expected to follow the e-roster policy on annual leave 6 DEFINITIONS Annual leave Bank holidays Public holidays Bank holiday entitlement The allowance provided to employees (subject to a minimum of 5.6 weeks per annum, pro rata) to be used as holiday and time away from the workplace. Bank holidays are determined by the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 and by Royal Proclamation. A public holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. The number of hours provided to employees to be used as holiday for bank holidays. Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 5 of 18

6 Leave allowance The total number of hours provided to an employee per year to be used as holiday this incorporates the sum of both their annual leave and bank / public holiday entitlement. Time off in lieu Time off that is taken instead of overtime pay by employees working beyond their contractual hours. 7 ANNUAL LEAVE ENTITLEMENTS The leave year runs from 1 st April to 31 st March. Employees will receive annual leave and bank holidays as set out in the table below. Entitlement to annual leave is calculated according to complete NHS service, which need not be continuous. Length of Service On appointment to NHS After 5 years NHS service After 10 years NHS service Annual Leave & Bank Holidays hours plus 60 hours hours plus 60 hours hours plus 60 hours Annual leave should be calculated in hours regardless of whether the employee is full-time or part-time. This ensures equity for all employees by ensuring those who work variable hours / shifts do not receive more or less than those colleagues on standard shifts. The calculation of annual leave entitlements can be found in Appendix 1. Hours have been rounded up to the nearest ½ hour. 8 BANK HOLIDAY ENTITLEMENTS All employees are entitled to 1/5 of their working week off for each bank holiday that occurs regardless of days worked. Employees on part-time contracts are entitled to pro-rata of the 8 bank holidays (60 hours) given to full-time employees. An employee s leave allowance should be calculated in hours and be inclusive of annual leave and bank holiday entitlements; effectively giving them one figure for how many hours they are permitted to have as leave throughout the financial year. This leave allowance should then be used to cover all episodes of absence for the purpose of planned holiday and bank holidays. This means that if an employee is scheduled to work on a day that is a bank holiday, the number of hours they would have worked needs to be deducted from their leave allowance. Similarly, if an employee is not rostered to work on a bank holiday then there is no deduction from their leave allowance. Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 6 of 18

7 As a result, all employees have a fair and equitable entitlement rather than an eligibility based solely on normal days worked. Details of how to calculate bank holidays for an employee starting part way through the year can be found in Appendix Bank Holiday Accrual Principles Bank holidays do not accrue during periods of sick leave, maternity leave or periods of unpaid leave. Employees who are required to work or be on-call on a bank holiday are entitled to equivalent time to be taken off in lieu at plain time rates in addition to the appropriate payment for duties undertaken. In a year where Easter falls before 1 st April (effectively meaning there are 10 bank holidays in a single financial year), the leave allowance should be amended to take account of the fact that in one year there will be 10 bank holidays and the next year there will only be 6. In this situation, the Human Resources Advice Centre will issue guidance on the amended accrual rates and managers are expected to amend the leave charts for employees within their departments. 9 PUBLIC HOLIDAYS On occasions, and by Royal Proclamation, additional days may be declared as bank or public holidays. In financial years when this happens, the HR Advice Centre will issue guidance for how the extra public holidays should be incorporated into the employees leave entitlements. 10 RECKONABLE SERVICE An employee s aggregated NHS service i.e. any period of time that has been worked in the NHS, regardless of whether there has been a break in service, will count as reckonable service for annual leave. This does not include honorary contracts. In order for this service to be recognised, it is the employee s responsibility to provide formal documentary evidence of previous service. Bank service can only be included where the employee can evidence that they worked during each available week. 11 LEAVE ALLOWANCE BASED ON VARIATIONS TO CONTRACT 11.1 Leave Allowance upon Joining the Trust All new employees will be entitled to receive annual leave plus bank / public holidays in the year of joining the Trust, on a pro rata basis based on full weeks worked. Please refer to Appendix 2 for examples on how to calculate annual leave. Bank and public holiday entitlements will be based on the number of bank or public holidays remaining in the current leave year from the date of joining. The Trust will make every effort to meet the needs of new employees in respect of commitments to holidays made prior to the commencement of employment. Managers Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 7 of 18

8 should ask new employees whether they have any booked leave prior to the start date so that they can plan in advance how this can be accommodated Leave Allowance upon Leaving the Trust Employees who leave the Trust or transfer to another department within the Trust will be entitled to the pro rata of their annual leave for complete weeks worked plus any bank or public holidays that have occurred in that time. Upon notice of termination of employment with the Trust, any outstanding leave allowance should normally be taken during the employee s notice period. Where agreed with the manager in advance, and depending on the needs of the service, the employee can receive payment for any outstanding leave and this will be paid by extending the employee s contract of employment by the appropriate number of days to ensure this is included as pensionable pay. Where the amount of annual leave taken exceeds the amount of entitlement accrued at the date of the termination of employment, the Trust will make an appropriate deduction from the final salary payment Leave Allowance on Changing Contracted Hours Where employees change their contracted hours, this will result in a recalculation of their annual leave entitlement based on completed weeks on the old and new contracted hours to give the full year entitlement. Examples on how to calculate this can be found in Appendix 2. The HR Advice Centre can also provide assistance with this calculation Leave Allowance Increase Due to Length of Service Where an employee s entitlement to annual leave increases due to length of service during the year, the additional entitlement (pro rata for part time staff) will become effective from the first month following the date of the increased entitlement. Employees need to ensure that they highlight an increase in their length of service to their manager as soon as possible. There is no facility to backdate this to a previous financial year if the employee has not brought it to their manager s attention. 12 ANNUAL LEAVE AUTHORISATION Employees should not commit to holiday plans (including booking flights / tickets / accommodation) until the annual leave request has been approved, as the manager has the right to refuse the request if the leave will impact negatively on the service needs. If a holiday or flight is booked and the annual leave is subsequently turned down, the employee will be fully responsible for any costs incurred. In order to book annual leave and have this authorised, an annual leave application form must be completed and counter-signed by the line manager. A copy of the form can be found in Appendix 3. Employees should provide reasonable notice for annual leave requests, and this needs to be 6 weeks minimum where clinical commitments need to be covered. The leave request form should be completed and given to the manager for consideration. If leave is taken before being approved by the manager, or the employee does not return from leave on time without Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 8 of 18

9 a valid reason (and / or without communication with the line manager), the leave will be classified as unauthorised and may lead to the disciplinary process being instigated. If an employee requests annual leave for a particular day or week, it is reasonable to be asked to work the night before if the service requires it. It is advisable for the employee to request not to be rostered on that shift. If this is not possible, annual leave should be booked. Each department or ward manager should agree how many employees can be on leave at any one time. Please refer to e-roster for guidance on how many employees can be off at any one time where this is in use. If e-rostering is not used by a department, local procedures should determine how many employees can be off at any one time. Managers reserve the right to refuse annual leave when available slots on e-roster are all taken. Employees may book a maximum of 2 consecutive weeks of annual leave with their manager. Where an employee requests in excess of 2 weeks, the request must be in writing to the Head of Nursing or equivalent head of department. For extended periods of leave (4 weeks or more), a minimum of 12 weeks notice is required. The employee will be expected to provide proof of a return flight prior to the leave being finally approved. It is recognised that there is often pressure on the service in all areas over school holidays and bank / public holidays, especially Christmas and New Year. Managers should encourage flexibility and empower colleagues to co-ordinate their leave at these time, but where this is not possible, managers should put a rota system in place to ensure fairness to all employees. No more than 2 weeks should be granted to employees during peak periods. Employees are required to take their leave evenly throughout the year as follows: 40% of their leave entitlement by 31 August 35% between September and December, 25% between January and the end of March 13 CARRY FORWARD OF LEAVE ALLOWANCE No annual leave should be carried over from one leave year to the next. There is no provision available to pay staff in lieu of annual leave that they have not taken in a given leave year. For employee s taking maternity leave, they should take at least what they have accrued prior to commencing maternity leave. Where possible, as much of the annual leave for the financial year should be taken prior to the maternity leave starting. Where this is not possible, any carry of leave must be taken prior to returning to work. 14 LEAVE ALLOWANCE AND SICKNESS ABSENCE 14.1 Accrual of Annual Leave during Sickness Absence Annual leave accrues during all sickness absence as per the employee s contractual entitlement during periods of paid sick leave; and based on statutory entitlement, as per the Working Time Directive, during episodes of unpaid sick leave. Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 9 of 18

10 In the cases of long term sickness absence where an employee is prevented from taking annual leave during the leave year in which it has been accrued they may carry over a maximum of 8.4 weeks statutory annual leave (18 months worth of statutory annual leave) into the new leave year (pro rata for part time staff). The annual leave accrued must be taken immediately following the period of sickness absence, prior to the employee returning to work. Annual leave cannot be replaced by a payment in lieu except where the employee s contract is terminated Sickness during Annual Leave or Bank / Public Holidays When an employee becomes sick during a period of annual leave they may reclaim the annual leave for the period where they are unfit (not the full leave period) to be used at a later date in the financial year provided that they follow the reporting procedures described in the Managing Sickness Absence Policy and submit a statement of fitness to work to verify the period of sickness, even when the period of sickness lasted less than 7 calendar days. Where an employee incurs a cost for obtaining a statement of fitness to work for this purpose, this may be reclaimed from the Trust. Backdated certificates i.e. covering a period prior to the doctor s appointment may not be accepted. Where an employee is sick whilst on annual leave abroad, they are still expected to maintain appropriate contact with their manager to update them regarding their health and obtain appropriate medical certification. If the statement of fitness to work is not in English, the employee should provide an authorised translation. If the sickness prevents the employee from being able to return to the UK as originally planned the employee should make their current contact details available and should provide details of their treating physician so Occupational Health may obtain information about the employee s prognosis. Further annual leave shall be suspended from the date of the first certificate. When an employee is sick immediately prior to or following annual leave they must contact their manager to advise of the dates of their sickness. A manager is entitled to request a statement of fitness to work if an employee is absent on the day immediately before and / or after annual leave / bank or public holidays. An employee is not entitled to a day off in lieu if they are sick on a bank or public holiday. Employees must therefore deduct their contractual hours from their leave entitlement if they are sick on such a day. 15 UNPAID LEAVE Requests for unpaid leave should be considered by managers on an individual basis. Unpaid leave should not normally be granted to employees until paid annual leave has been exhausted. The maximum amount of unpaid leave that would normally be granted in a single leave year is four weeks. In exceptional circumstances, up to three months may be granted. Managers must ensure that unpaid leave is appropriately recorded and relevant documentation is completed to ensure Payroll are informed of the unpaid leave dates. If employees consider that they will require longer than 3 months as unpaid leave then an application should be made in accordance with the Flexible Working Policy (Incorporating Career Breaks). Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 10 of 18

11 16 TIME OFF IN LIEU It circumstances where it will be beneficial to the needs of the department or service, an employee may request to work additional hours in exchange for receiving an equal number of hours as time off in lieu (TOIL). Employees must provide adequate notice and acquire written authorisation from their line manager prior to undertaking any additional hours that they would like to claim as TOIL. In the event an employee does not provide adequate notice to their line manager of their intention to work additional hours in exchange for TOIL and / or they do not receive written authorisation from their line manager that this is agreed, then they will not be entitled to receive any hours back as TOIL. The Trust encourages employees to have appropriate rest breaks from the organisation and therefore working additional hours over a prolonged period of time is not encouraged. For this reason, employees can only accumulate a maximum of half their weekly contracted hours as TOIL per month, and this can only be authorised for a maximum of two consecutive months. After an employee has accumulated TOIL in two consecutive months, they will then be prevented from accumulating TOIL for the next calendar month. In order to request the TOIL hours, the same provisions apply as for requesting annual leave; however any accumulated hours must be used within 28 days of accrual. Employees are not permitted to carry forward TOIL after 28 days without written permission from their line manager. 17 OTHER TYPES OF LEAVE For details of other types of leave that are available, employees should refer to the Special Leave Policy. 18 EVALUATION MEASURES MONITORING AND AUDIT This policy will be communicated to all staff at local induction and via the staff intranet, communication through team briefs, managerial and departmental meetings. The Divisions will log and approve annual leave requests on a database with the respective dates. The Head of Department will monitor any issues on an ongoing basis and take any action necessary. 19 REFERENCES Xpert HR, (2015). How to manage bank holidays. [Accessed on 14 th April 2015]. Available from: 20 RELATED POLICIES Sickness Absence Policy Flexible Working Policy (Incorporating Career Breaks) Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 11 of 18

12 Special Leave Policy 21 REVIEW OF THIS POLICY This policy is expected to be reviewed within 2 years but if this is deemed unnecessary the policy will remain in force until such time as it is reviewed. 22 EQUALITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT Standard Equality Impact Assessment Tool Persons likely to be affected by policy change / implementation Staff Are there concerns that the proposed documentation / change could have an adverse impact on: Race. Ethnicity, National Origin, Culture, Heritage Religion, Faith, Philosophical Belief Gender, Marital Status, Pregnancy Physical or Learning Disabilities Mental Health Sexual Orientation / Gender Reassignment Age Homelessness, Gypsy / Travellers, Refugees / Asylum Seekers Please give details of any adverse impact identified: No Yes No No No No No No There might be occasions when employees will require time off from work for religious observance, and these requests should be dealt with sensitively by the line manager. It might not always be possible to grant such requests for leave and the Trust needs to ensure the staffing levels across the Trust is safe, meaning some employees may be required to work on a day that is of religious significance to them. If adverse impacts are identified, are these considered justifiable? (Please give reasoning) It is considered justifiable for the Trust to refuse requests for annual leave for religious observance where granting such requests could compromise the safety or patients by leaving a ward / department under resourced. Line managers should be sensitive to the requests made by employees and consider implementing a rota for employees in their team where there is high demand for certain religious festivals to be taken as leave. Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 12 of 18

13 23 POLICY AND PROCEDURE SIGN-OFF SHEET Policy Name and Number: Version Number and Date: No: Service Location: PLEASE INSERT SERVICE LOCATION All staff members must sign to confirm they have read and understood this policy. Name Signature Name Signature Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 13 of 18

14 AGENDA FOR CHANGE: ANNUAL LEAVE ENTITLEMENT Appendix 1 On Appointment 27 days After 5 years' service 29 days After 10 years' service 33 days Hours worked per week Bank Holidays [8 days] Exclusive A/L Inclusive A/L Exclusive A/L Inclusive AL Exclusive A/L Inclusive AL Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 14 of 18

15 On Appointment 27 days After 5 years' service 29 days After 10 years' service 33 days Hours worked per Bank Holidays week [8 days] Exclusive A/L Inclusive A/L Exclusive A/L Inclusive AL Exclusive A/L Inclusive AL Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 15 of 18

16 Appendix 2 HOW TO CALCULATE ANNUAL LEAVE INCLUSIVE OF BANK HOLIDAYS FOR AN EMPLOYEE STARTING PART WAY THROUGH THE YEAR 1. Take A/L entitlement appropriate to number of hours worked per week excluding bank holidays 2. Divide total by 12 (months in the year) 3. Multiply answer in point 2 by number of months left in the leave year plus complete weeks worked 4. Take full bank holiday entitlement appropriate to number of hours worked per week 5. Divide total by 8 (number of B/Hs in the year) 6. Multiply answer in point 5 by number of bank holidays left in the leave year 7. Add the figures from point 3 and point 6 to give the total leave entitlement for the year Example Sarah joined the Trust on 19th November and works 22.5 hours per week. She has 10 years aggregated NHS service. Point / 12 = Point * 4.5 = 55.5 hours (0.5 as they have completed 2 full weeks) Point / 8 = 4.5 hours Point * 3 = 13.5 hours Grand Total: = 69 hours Please note that to work out the part month, use 0.25 for 1 week, 0.5 for 2 weeks and 0.75 for 3 weeks HOW TO CALCULATE ANNUAL LEAVE INCLUSIVE OF BANK HOLIDAYS FOR AN EMPLOYEE CHANGING THEIR HOURS PART WAY THROUGH THE YEAR Sarah works 37.5 hours per week and from 1st September she will reduce to 20 hours per week. She has 3 years NHS service. You should refer to the formula detailed above and use for 37.5 hours and then repeat the exercise for the 20 hours, and add the two figures together to give you the total leave entitlement for the year Part 1 Part 2 A/L = / 12 * 5 = 84.5 hours A/L = 108 / 12 * 7 = 63 hours B/H = 60 / 8 * 5 = 37.5 hours B/H = 32 / 8 * 3 = 12 hours Total = = 122 hours Total = = 75 hours Grand total: = 197 hours Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 16 of 18

17 HOW TO CALCULATE ANNUAL LEAVE INCLUSIVE OF BANK HOLIDAYS FOR AN EMPLOYEE INCREASING THEIR LEAVE ENTITLEMENT DUE TO LENGTH OF SERVICE Matthew works 30 hours per week but from 1 st July, will have achieved 10 years service. 1. Take A/L entitlement appropriate to No of hours worked per week excluding bank holidays based on 29 days 2. Divide total by 12 (months in the year) 3. Multiply answer in point 2 by No of months worked on that entitlement 4. Repeat step1 but using the annual leave entitlement for 33 days appropriate to the No of hours worked 5. Divide this number by 12 and multiple by the no of months at the higher entitlement 6. Add answer from point 3 and 5 together to give you the total. Please note the bank holiday figure is unaffected so you can add this on at the end. Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 17 of 18

18 Appendix 3 ANNUAL LEAVE REQUEST FORM ANNUAL LEAVE Entitlement in hours Long Service Carried over 0 TOTAL HOURS (pro rata) Period of leave From To No of hours Total to date Balance remaining Authorised by / on Reason Author: Christine Taylor Review Date: June 2017 Page 18 of 18