ANNUAL LEAVE & PUBLIC HOLIDAY PROCEDURE

Transcription

1 ANNUAL LEAVE & PUBLIC HOLIDAY PROCEDURE Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 1 of 26

2 Recommended by Approved by HR Senior Management Team Executive Management Team Approval Date 16 December 2015 Version Number 1.6 Review Date December 2018 Responsible Executive Director Responsible Manager For use by Director of Organisational Development Strategic HR Manager All Trust Employees This PROCEDURE is available in alternative formats on request. Please contact the Human Resources department on Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 2 of 26

3 CHANGE RECORD FORM Version Date of change Date of release Changed by Reason for change April 2009 Marshall Kumawu New procedure for booking annual leave October October 2010 Lisa Ward Consultation with Managers November November 2010 Lisa Ward Terms and Conditions group November November 2010 Lisa Ward Terms and Conditions group December December 2010 Lisa Ward 0.6 November 2011 November 2011 Emma Forsyth 0.7 November 2011 November 2011 Emma Forsyth 0.8 December 2011 December 2011 Lisa Ward 0.9 January 2012 January 2012 Lorraine McConnell February February 2012 Emma Forsyth March 2012 Emma Forsyth Terms and Conditions group & A&E Consultation group Amends following feedback received during consultation in Amends following review to remove duplication within document. Agreed content of PTS appendix at PTS consultative Group Agreed content of PES appendix at PES consultative Group / considered PES issues Amendments made following Policy Group Consultation (full document) Amendments made following the Policy Group on the 2 March May May 2012 Emma Forsyth Approval by EMT June June 2012 Emma Forsyth Minor amendments made December December 2012 Lisa Ward Minor amendment made April April 2013 Vickie Camfield Update of the ESR inbox addresses June June 2014 Vickie Camfield Minor amendments made 1.5 September 2015 Richard Woods 1.6 Dec 2015 Richard Woods Draft amendments for October policy Review group. Final amendment for Dec policy group (10.4) Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 3 of 26

4 ANNUAL LEAVE & PUBLIC HOLIDAY PROCEDURE Contents Page 1. Introduction 5 2. Scope 5 3. Annual Leave Year 5 4. Annual Leave and Bank Holiday Entitlement 5 5. Roles and Responsibilities 6 6. Management and Authorisation of Annual Leave 7 7. Withdrawal of Agreement to take Leave 7 8. Extended Periods of Annual Leave 8 9. Sickness during Annual Leave or Bank Holiday Carry over of Annual Leave Late Return from Holiday Public Holidays Bank Holiday Entitlement of Part-Time Employees Unpaid Leave Buying Additional Annual Leave Changes to Contractual Arrangements Substitution of Paid Annual Leave Christmas and New Year Bank Holidays Falling at a Weekend 11 APPENDICES 1. Annual Leave and Bank Holiday Calculation Tables Emergency Services Procedure for Booking Annual Leave Patient Transport Procedure for Booking Annual Leave Guidance for Buying Additional Annual Leave Buying Additional Annual Leave Form 24 Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 4 of 26

5 1. Introduction 1.1 It is important that employees are encouraged to take annual leave in order to rest and recuperate to ensure both their well-being and their effectiveness when at work. This is also a requirement under the Working Time Regulations, (see Working Time Regulations Guidance). It is necessary however for the efficient management of the Trust, that all leave is monitored and kept within pre-determined parameters. 1.2 The aim of this procedure is to provide a uniformed and equitable approach to the calculation of annual leave and General Public Bank Holiday entitlements that take into account the relevant terms and conditions of service defined within the Agenda for Change Handbook. 2. Scope 2.1 The procedure applies to all Trust employees, including temporary employees, on Agenda for Change terms and conditions. The arrangements relating to the profiling and booking of annual leave apply to all employees. This procedure is also applicable to agency workers, who after 12 weeks in the same assignment have the right to receive basic annual leave entitlement, comparable to Trust employees, in accordance with the Agency Worker Regulations. 3. Annual Leave Year 3.1 The Trust s annual leave period runs from 1 st April to 31 st March. 4. Annual Leave and Bank Holiday Entitlement 4.1 The basic annual leave provisions under Agenda for Change are contained in Table 1 below. Based on a full time equivalent = 37.5 hours. On Appointment 27 days Annual Leave plus 8 days General Public Bank Holidays After 5 Years Service 29 days Annual Leave plus 8 days General Public Bank Holidays After 10 Years Service 33 days Annual Leave plus 8 days General Public Bank Holidays. 4.2 Where employees work standard shifts other than 7.5 hours (excluding meal breaks), annual leave and general public holiday entitlements should be calculated on an hourly basis to prevent employees on these shifts receiving greater or lesser leave than colleagues on standard shifts. 4.3 The calculation of annual leave and public holiday entitlements are contained in Tables 2 and 3 at Appendix 1. Hours have been rounded up or down to the nearest 0.5 decimal point (i.e. the nearest 30 minutes). Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 5 of 26

6 4.4 Where an employee achieves a new length of service and the anniversary of their start date falls in the first 6 months of the leave year it be applied in the current leave year. However where the start date falls in the last 6 months of the leave year, the additional days will be added to the leave entitlement in the following April. 4.5 New entrants in their first year receive their leave entitlement pro rata to the number of full months left in the annual leave year (if they join before 7th of a month this will count as a full month). They will also receive the actual number of bank holidays remaining in the year. 4.6 When staff leave the Trust, their entitlement will be calculated based on the full months they have worked during that annual leave year. Where staff have taken more than their entitlement a deduction will be made from their final salary. 5. Roles and Responsibilities 5.1 Employees It is the responsibility of the employee to obtain management approval for annual leave before committing themselves to holiday plans. Annual Leave requests will be approved/declined subject to the needs of the service When an employee s decides that they wish to take annual leave, an application, using the appropriate process should be made to their line manager or Central Rostering Unit (CRU). All requests should be made at the earliest opportunity All employees are responsible for ensuring they can plan and take (subject to the needs of the service) all their annual leave entitlement within the leave year. Failure to do this may result in employees forfeiting any outstanding leave not taken at the end of the leave year All employees should be aware that leave will not be regarded as confirmed until it has been signed off in writing/verbally/via GRS by their authorised manager, group administrator, Rostering Coordinator or CRU Employees in conjunction with their managers have a responsibility not to exceed their annual leave entitlement. 5.2 Managers It is the responsibility of managers to have in place a fair and effective system for booking and recording all annual leave. Employees should be informed of this during their local induction. Records must be kept for two years and in accordance with the Data Protection Act Managers must advise each employee of the procedure and time-scale for requesting annual leave. Line managers should ensure that an accurate record is maintained for the Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 6 of 26

7 department and the teams they manage in respect of annual leave entitlement and leave taken Line Managers are responsible for proactively encouraging employees to take their leave and benefit from the rest it provides Line Managers are responsible for authorising annual leave requests ensuring sufficient resources are in place to meet the service needs of the Trust The Manager will respond to employees request for annual leave in an appropriate and timely manner taking into account the notice given for the leave request. Where a refusal of leave is necessary, the Manager will explain to the employee the reasons for refusal and aim to agree a mutually acceptable compromise. 5.3 Human Resources The Human Resources Department is responsible for keeping this procedure up to date and compliant with employment legislation HR employees are responsible for providing advice and guidance to managers and employees on the application of this procedure. 6. Management and Authorisation of Annual Leave 6.1 Specific arrangements, in addition to these general principles, apply to Patient Transport services and Paramedic Emergency Service employees, which are set out in Appendices 2 and Authorisation for annual leave is at the discretion of the line manager who will consider the request in line with service requirements and requests from other employees. A manager may refuse a request if there is inadequate cover or no availability of leave but an explanation will be provided for the refusal. 6.3 Managers approving annual leave requests will confirm whether approval is given at the earliest opportunity. Generally this should be no later than 7 days after receipt of the request, unless it is a short notice request for leave which should be responded to as soon as possible. 7. Withdrawal of Agreed Annual Leave 7.1 In exceptional and rare circumstances, (e.g., acts of terrorism, flu pandemic etc), which would activate the Trust s Emergency Plan, the Trust reserves the right to withdraw approval of leave should the circumstances warrant it and following agreement with the joint trade unions. Where leave is withdrawn, every effort will be made to minimise any inconvenience and financial impact to the employee. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 7 of 26

8 8. Extended Periods of Annual Leave 8.1 In special circumstances, employees may request extended periods of annual leave, e.g. four weeks leave at any one time. Requests for extended leave will not be unreasonably refused but will also be considered in light of service requirements and arrangements for cover. 8.2 Requests for annual leave of more than two consecutive weeks must be authorised in writing by a more senior manager than the immediate line manager (e.g. Patient Transport Services Area Manager or Paramedic Emergency Services Sector Manager). There is no automatic right to extended holidays, i.e. over two weeks and it will only be approved if service needs allow. 9. Sickness during Annual Leave or Bank Holiday 9.1 If an employee falls sick whilst on annual leave or on a day adjacent to annual leave, normal reporting and certification arrangements apply. Annual leave may be reclaimed for the days that s/he is sick provided that a medical certificate is supplied to cover these days. See Trust s Sickness Absence Policy. 9.2 In accordance with Agenda for Change Terms and Conditions, employees (full and parttime) who become sick on a public holiday, will not be entitled to take time in lieu of the public holiday. Public Holiday hours must be deducted from inclusive holiday entitlement. 9.3 Where an employee has an extended period of sickness they can opt to take annual leave during this period. To do so they must apply in writing to their manager and arrangements will be made to take them off sickness and place them on annual leave for the agreed period. See Trust s Sickness Absence Policy. 10. Carry Over of Annual Leave 10.1 The Trust expects that within the annual leave year employees should be provided with the opportunity to take all their annual leave. In exceptional circumstances where employees have been unable to take all of their annual leave due to service need, up to one week of basic contracted hours (pro-rata for part time employees) may be carried over to the following leave year Carry-over of leave will only be approved in circumstances where an employee is able to demonstrate that they were prevented, solely due to the needs of the service, from taking the normal full entitlement during the relevant leave year or with their managers agreement, that they are transferring it for an agreed purpose Approval is required to carry forward in excess of 1 weeks annual leave and can only be granted by the relevant Assistant Director or Heads of Service. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 8 of 26

9 10.4 If employees have been unable to take annual leave during a leave year due to long-term sickness absence, they can carry the unused statutory element (20 days) less any annual leave days taken during the year, forward into the following leave year (even if this exceeds 5 days) and this will be added on to the following year s statutory entitlement (maximum of 28 days i.e. 20 days plus 8 days bank holidays). Under no circumstances can statutory leave be carried forward for more than 18 months after the end of the leave year in which the leave was accrued. Alternatively, the maximum contractual leave that can be carried forward is 5 days and this is added to the following year s contractual entitlement. (Please note carry forward values quoted relate to full time staff, the values should be pro rata for part time staff). 11. Late Return from Holiday 11.1 In exceptional circumstances, e.g. flight cancellations due to industrial action overseas, the employee is expected and must make every reasonable effort to inform their manager of the situation and enable their return to work Upon their return to work due consideration will be given according to the merits of each case, and the appropriate leave arrangements (e.g., annual leave, unpaid leave) agreed retrospectively. 12. Public Holidays 12.1 Public Holidays for part-time employees will be calculated on a pro-rata basis and this is included in the Annual Leave Calculation Chart. Public Holiday entitlement for part time workers will be added to their annual leave entitlement, giving an inclusive total annual leave. Public holidays must then be booked and taken in accordance with their working pattern. Part time employees cannot change their days of work to avoid booking and taking public holidays Where an employee is rostered to work on a bank holiday they will have the appropriate number of hours added to their leave allowance (as time of in lieu), when the hours worked are over 7.5 (e.g. 4 hours for a 12 hour shift) The number of bank holidays per year varies dependant when Easter falls. In line with Agenda for Change, bank holidays will be added to the annual leave entitlement on the basis of 8 per year. This will ensure consistency across all leave years 13. Bank Holiday Entitlement for Part-Time Employees 13.1 Part-time employees are covered by the Part-Time Workers Regulations 2000, which give a legal right to the pro rata benefits of full-time employees. All part-time employees will receive a pro rata entitlement to bank holidays. See Table 3 Appendix 1. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 9 of 26

10 13.2 If an employee is not due to work on the bank holiday, (i.e. it is a non working day/rostered day off) the employee will not be required to deduct any time from their inclusive annual leave entitlement If an employee is due to work on a bank holiday, but is not required as the service is closed, the employee will be required to deduct the hours they were due to work that day from their inclusive annual leave entitlement. If their annual leave entitlement has been exhausted then the employee will be required to take unpaid leave An employee may not double the time off benefit of bank holidays. This means that a parttime employee will not benefit from time off in lieu for a bank holiday worked for which he/she has already received a pro rata leave allowance for. 14. Unpaid Leave 14.1 There may be occasions where an employee requests unpaid leave. This will be considered by the line manager, in line with service needs, and in accordance with the Special Leave procedure. 15. Buying Additional Annual Leave 15.1 The Trust recognises that employees may wish have flexibility to take more than the standard contractual entitlement to annual leave. Therefore there is an option for employees to buy additional annual leave based on the following principles: Any employee with one or more year s continuous service may apply to purchase additional annual leave. The maximum time that can be applied for is 2 weeks/75 hours, pro rata for part time employees. The cost for purchasing additional annual leave will be deducted from the employee s monthly salary with the savings added to the relevant budget. Any request for additional leave that is approved should not be to the detriment of the service or have any additional costs involved, including a requirement to back fill the position. An employee who applies to buy additional annual leave will be required to take their full Agenda for Change leave entitlement for that year. They will only be able to carry leave over in exceptional circumstances All employees and managers should refer to appendix 4 for further guidance. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 10 of 26

11 16. Changes to Contractual Arrangements 16.1 Where there is a contractual change of working hours during the year, annual leave entitlement will be recalculated based on the number of months worked at the original hours and the number of months worked on the new hours, e.g., X number of months at the old rate = A, X number of months at the new rate = B, C = Total Annual Leave therefore A + B = C. 17. Substitution of Paid Annual Leave 17.1 Employees may not undertake paid work during the 4 weeks paid statutory annual leave under the Working Time Directive i.e. the first 4 weeks and annual leave cannot be foregone for pay The only circumstances where payment can be made in respect of annual leave are:- (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) The long term sickness of an employee during their last year of service (when an employee returns from long term sickness absence, they should take accrued annual leave in the current leave year) Where there is death in service Redundancy and dismissal. When an individual is leaving the Trust then there is an expectation that they will take outstanding annual leave before terminating employment but if there are exceptional circumstances then payment can be made Where, through reasons of termination of employment with the Trust, the amount of paid annual leave taken during an employee s final leave year exceeds the amount of entitlement accrued at the date of the termination of his/her employment with NWAS, the Trust shall recover from him/her pay at the prevailing rate, equivalent to the number of days by which he/she has exceeded his/her entitlement. 18 Christmas and New Year Bank Holiday Falling at a Weekend 18.1 Where bank holidays fall at a weekend (for example at Christmas or New Year) and the statutory public holidays are moved to a weekday, then special arrangements will apply to employees required to work as set out in Annex Y of the Terms and Conditions Handbook. In principle, if employees work on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year s Day or one of the revised statutory public holidays they will be able to claim time in lieu for working on any of those days subject to a maximum of 2 public holidays over the Christmas weekend and one public holiday over the New Year weekend. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 11 of 26

12 Appendix 1: Tables for the calculation of Annual and Public Holidays Table 1 - Agenda for Change: Annual Leave entitlement for complete years exclusive of Bank Holidays WEEKLY BASIC CONTRACTED ON AFTER 5 YEARS AFTER 10 YEARS HOURS APPOINTMENT SERVICE SERVICE 27 DAYS 29 DAYS 33 DAYS HOURS EQUIVALENT: Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 12 of 26

13 WEEKLY BASIC CONTRACTED ON AFTER 5 YEARS AFTER 10 YEARS HOURS APPOINTMENT SERVICE SERVICE 27 DAYS 29 DAYS 33 DAYS HOURS EQUIVALENT: Formula is: Weekly Contracted Hrs X No. of Days Entitlement Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 13 of 26

14 5 Table 2 - Agenda for Change: calculation of Bank Holiday entitlement WEEKLY BASIC CONTRACTED HOURS HOURLY ENTITLEMENT FOR FULL LEAVE YEAR (8 BANK HOLIDAYS) HOURLY ENTITLEMENT ON EACH BANK HOLIDAY AS IT OCCURS (based on working even hours over 5 days per week) Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 14 of 26

15 WEEKLY BASIC CONTRACTED HOURS HOURLY ENTITLEMENT FOR FULL LEAVE YEAR (8 BANK HOLIDAYS) HOURLY ENTITLEMENT ON EACH BANK HOLIDAY AS IT OCCURS (based on working even hours over 5 days per week) Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 15 of 26

16 Appendix 2: Paramedic Emergency Service Procedure for Booking Annual Leave The following key principles must apply to any local procedure in place for the management of leave arrangements in the Emergency Services: Where the model procedure has not been adopted, local managers and trade union representatives should arrange to review the current arrangements against the agreed principles for leave processes. Where the current arrangements do not meet the principles outlined above it is expected that the model procedures will be adopted. MODEL PROCEDURE FOR BOOKING ANNUAL LEAVE 1. Reserve Employees 1.2 Employees who are working on a reserve basis (without a regular shift line) may request occasional annual leave days or rostered days off in advance of the rotas being published and this will be accommodated wherever possible within the shift rotas. This will be subject to resource levels within the group and will be monitored by the group manager to ensure that it is applied fairly and equitably. 2. Allocating Annual Leave 2.1 In order to maintain essential resource levels each group will allocate annual leave to ensure that leave is spread evenly throughout the year and ensure adequate employees cover is maintained across all grades 2.2 Annual leave should be spread over the year, broadly based on the percentages below, so staff requests should reflect this and will be considered on this basis. If an employee has not submitted preferences for annual leave by the closing date, as below, their leave will be profiled according to availability within the group. 1 st January closing date - 25% of leave will be allocated for April to June 1 st March closing date - 25% of leave will be allocated for July to September 1 st June closing date - 25% of leave will be allocated for October to December 1 st September closing date - 25% of leave will be allocated for January to March 2.3 After leave has been profiled employees may agree mutual swaps between themselves but must notify the group administrator, Rostering Coordinators or CRU, who will ensure that the swap maintains appropriate cover across all grades and so that records can be updated. 2.4 Requests received will be prioritised according to: a) Date order of receipt of application Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 16 of 26

17 b) Requests for a full week / two weeks will be given priority over single days as it will be easier for an employee requesting a single day to arrange a shift swap. c) In the event of two or more requests being equally prioritised on the above factors all parties will be approached to try and reach an amicable agreement. d) If it is not possible to reach an amicable agreement requests will be drawn from a hat. e) Whether or not the same period was requested in the previous year (i.e. Christmas leave) 3. Christmas and New Year 3.1 Annual Leave may be requested throughout the year, however generally between 21 st December and 4 th January this will be available at the reduced limit of 8% minimum (this limit will be determined on an annual basis by the local Area A&E Consultative Group based on workload and expected activity) to ensure adequate resource levels. Requests are limited to a maximum of one week and employees must be available and willing to work shifts during the other week. 3.2 Annual Leave over the Christmas period will be subject to the limits in 3.1 but the prioritisation of leave will differ for this period. Requests for annual leave over the Christmas period must be submitted by 12 th November of the relevant annual leave year and Christmas leave will be allocated by the end of November. Applications can be made for a maximum of one week s leave but staff may not be offered the full week once leave is allocated. Allocation of leave will take into account the following: Priority will be given to staff who were not granted leave on key dates the previous year Staff who were sick over the previous Christmas period will not be prioritised If leave is still over subscribed then applications will be drawn out of a hat with staff side present 3.3 Any shift swaps will be rearranged subject to service needs and local agreement. 3.4 Every effort will be made to avoid reserve employees working more than 2 of the 3 designated bank holidays. 4. How leave will be allocated 4.1 To ensure the correct amount of leave is taken across all stations and within the funded leave limits and that all staff take the full leave allowance the following process will be used. 4.2 Prior to the rostering team allocating annual leave for individual members of staff they will contact employees to allow them a final opportunity to book in the required amount of leave, before doing this on their behalf. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 17 of 26

18 4.2 All leave will be based on a station group level (this is usually a small group of stations within a specific geographical area and will mirror existing station groupings) or a single control room 4.3 Leave will be split into two distinct staff groups a) Paramedics b) all other grades for control this might be EMD s and Dispatchers 4.4 Within the group/control a calculation will be made of all actual staff total annual leave hours plus bank holiday hours by staff group (a or b ) to give a sum total. This group will be divided by 50 to give the total number of hours of leave to be used every week. 4.5 Where leave has been refused because the percentage allocation has been reached, and individuals have been unable to arrange a swap, then they should initially approach their local manager to discuss the reasons for their request and whether there is any flexibility which can be applied to their situation. If the matter cannot be resolved then they should raise it with their local representative and a discussion held with the Sector Manager, the representative and the individual to try to find a resolution. There may be some flexibility for managers, at their discretion, to increase the maximum percentage leave, if sickness or training projections are lower than expected for example. 4.6 As the total is based establishment figures, regular reviews will take place during the year to increase / decrease based upon recruitment and leavers 5. Cancellation or Amendment to Leave 5.1 If an employee wishes to cancel booked leave they must give 4 weeks notice. They will resume on their regular shift line and where a reserve was allocated to cover the line they will be found alternative shifts in line with the Reserve Policy. Anyone who cancels within the 4 week period will be allocated a reserve shift. 5.2 Any requests to rearrange leave will be subject to maintaining adequate staffing levels and requests previously refused will not be considered unless leave has now become available due to another employee s change of request. 5.3 Leave not profiled at the start of the year should normally be applied for a minimum of 4 weeks in advance and before rotas are published. In these circumstances leave will be granted if it is still available within the group s leave allocation. 5.4 Employees who submit requests within 4 weeks of when they want to take leave can be granted leave only if leave is still available within the group s leave allocation and subject to the availability of colleagues to cover their shifts or by arranging a shift swap. Emergency leave may be granted by the manager for exceptional circumstances. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 18 of 26

19 Appendix 3: Patient Transport Procedure for Booking Annual Leave 1. Introduction 1.1 This procedure has been developed in partnership with managers and staff representatives to provide a service wide system for fair and consistent allocation of annual leave across all PTS groups, whilst ensuring that the Service is able to fulfil its committed resource levels. This procedure is applicable to all operational and control staff within PTS. 2. Requesting Annual Leave 2.1 Before annual leave is profiled, employees are advised to submit their requests for leave. This booking date will be 1st September each year, thereby ensuring that all employees across all groups have the same opportunity to submit requests at the same time. 2.2 All requests for leave should be submitted to the supervisor, CSM or line manager and can be submitted in hard copy, by or by fax as long as the request is on the appropriate form. Requests may be submitted before 1st September but all requests submitted in time for this date will be treated equally. All requests for annual leave will be acknowledged in writing to confirm receipt. 2.3 Requests submitted after this date will be date stamped on the day of receipt. Applications will then be processed on a first come, first served basis, allowing leave to be booked between 12 and 18 months in advance of when it is to be taken. The booking period for leave will be as below: 1st September Leave requests may be submitted for the 12 month period from 1st April to 31st March the following year 2.4 It is an employee s responsibility to book leave and if they fail to do so then leave may be allocated in line with section Requests for additional leave due to exceptional circumstances, (e.g. weddings) will be considered on an individual basis, subject to leave availability. 2.6 Under normal circumstances all leave must be taken within the financial year for which it has been accrued, any requests to carry forward leave into the following financial year will be dealt with by the Operational Manager or Control Manager and in accordance with the Trust Annual Leave procedure. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 19 of 26

20 2.7 Due to the volume of requests expected within September all requests submitted during September will be confirmed within 28 days of the request being submitted. After this date requests will be confirmed within 7 days of being submitted. 2.8 Once annual leave has been profiled for the following year it will be available for staff to view, so that they can see availability for leave further requests or to enable them to arrange swaps. This will be issued in the first instance by 1st October for the following year. Line Managers will ensure that this is kept updated with changes. Updated copies will be dated and made available at each station as soon as practicable. 3. Profiling of Annual Leave 3.1 In order to maintain essential resource levels each group will profile annual leave to ensure that leave is spread evenly throughout the year. Managers will agree with staff side on an annual basis a maximum percentage of staff who can be allowed to take leave at any one time. 3.2 The maximum percentage will normally apply across each operational group (or controls location) but local managers can agree with representatives how this percentage is applied to take account of local variations, for example, in Cumbria and other rural locations the percentage can be applied on a station rather than group basis. Managers should ensure that the method being used is communicated to all staff affected. In Control the agreed percentage will apply to skills groups i.e. call takers, planners/controllers/ ALOs. 3.3 If an employee has not submitted preferences for annual leave by the closing date, as below, their leave will be profiled according to availability within the group. 1st January closing date 1st March closing date 1st June closing date 1st Sept closing date - 25% of leave will be allocated for April to June - 25% of leave will be allocated for July to Sept - 25% of leave will be allocated for Oct to Dec - 25% of leave will be allocated for Jan to March Groups will profile leave to ensure adequate staff cover is maintained across all grades % of an employee s annual leave entitlement may be retained to cover emergency leave needs. If this has not been taken plans should be submitted between the 1st December and the 1st January to use this up before the end of March. If requests are not submitted the remaining leave will be profiled according to availability. 3.5 After leave has been profiled employees may agree mutual swaps between themselves but must notify their supervisor by completing and signing the appropriate form so that records can be updated. 3.6 Where leave has been refused because the percentage allocation has been reached, and individuals have been unable to arrange a swap, then they should initially approach their local manager to discuss the reasons for their request and whether there is any flexibility Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 20 of 26

21 which can be applied to their situation. If the matter cannot be resolved then they should raise it with their local representative and a discussion held with the Area Manager, the representative and the individual to try to find a resolution. 4. Arrangements for Periods of Peak Demand for annual leave 4.1 In order to fairly allocate the periods of peak demand for annual leave the following will apply. If an employee is refused leave due to excessive demand, a note of the individual refused and the date will also be kept so that if there is a cancellation this leave may be reoffered to the individual originally refused. 4.2 Requests received will be prioritised according to: Employees who have been refused leave for that date on a prior occasion according to the date of their prior application Date order of receipt of application Requests for a full week/two weeks will be given priority over single days as it will be easier for an employee requesting a single day to arrange a shift swap. In the event of two or more requests being equally prioritised on the above factors all parties will be approached to try and reach an amicable agreement. If it is not possible to reach an amicable agreement requests will be drawn from a hat. 5. Cancelling or Amending Leave 5.1 If an employee has booked annual leave and then is unable to take this due to either sickness absence (as long as the requirements of the Sickness Policy in this respect are met) or changes in circumstances, the leave should be re-booked, but not necessarily taken within 4 weeks of the employee cancelling or returning to work following sickness. If the leave is not re-booked it will be profiled as per this agreement. The individual will be advised of this during their Return to Work meeting. 5.2 Any requests to rearrange leave will be considered and approved where this does not impinge on service delivery. 5.3 Employees who submit requests for leave within 7 days of it being taken can be granted leave only if leave is still available within the group s leave allocation and subject to the availability of colleagues to cover their shifts or by arranging a shift swap. Emergency leave may be granted by the Operational Manager or Control Manager for exceptional circumstances. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 21 of 26

22 Appendix 4: Guidance Buying Additional Annual Leave 1. Application Process 1.1 An employee who wishes to make a request for buying additional annual leave should complete the application form found in appendix 5 and submit to the relevant Assistant Director/Head of Service. 1.2 Applications must be made for full weeks and not individuals days. 1.3 Once an application form has been received the Assistant Director/Head of Service will consider the request and confirm their decision to the employee within 10 days of the request being received. 1.4 There is no automatic right to additional leave and it is subject to the needs of the service. In the event of an application being refused reasons will be identified to the employee and any alternatives will be explored. Reasons for refusing additional leave can include but not limited to operational service needs or unable to accommodate due to costs associated with back filling the post. 1.5 The buying of additional annual leave will not be approved where there will be a requirement to back fill the post and therefore the Trust incurring a cost. 1.6 The procedure for booking any purchased additional leave will be subject to the normal annual leave arrangements outlined in this Procedure. 1.7 Once an application form has been approved a copy of the signed form should be ed by the manager to the relevant ESR form inbox (ESRforms.GM@NWAS.nhs.uk, ESRforms.CAM@nwas.nhs.uk, ESRforms.CAL@nwas.nhs.uk) for processing. 2. Timescales 2.1 Employees are encouraged to apply to buy additional leave by the end of March for the following leave year. This will enable deductions to be spread across the entire leave year. If an employee wishes to apply later in the year, they may do so providing the form is submitted by the payroll deadlines and they are aware that the deductions will be spread over a reduced number of months in the remaining leave year. 3. Deductions Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 22 of 26

23 3.1 If an employee s request for buying additional annual leave is approved then the cost of the leave will be deducted from their monthly salary over the course of the leave year. 3.2 By completing and submitting the application form for buying additional annual leave, the employee is consenting to their salary being adjusted to accommodate the associated costs. 3.3 The deduction will produce a reduction in an employee s gross basic (including unsocial hours) pay per month and as a result all employees should be aware that by buying additional leave this will have an impact on their pension contributions. 3.4 The buying of additional leave must be repaid in full within that current leave year. 4. Withdrawal of Additional Leave Request 4.1 Once an employee has begun payments the Trust will only in exceptional circumstances outlined in 7.1 be able withdraw the approval of additional annual leave. The employee will be reimbursed any payments that may have already been made. 5. Untaken Annual Leave 5.1 If, having purchased additional annual leave, the employee fails to take it before the end of the relevant leave year the leave will be lost, apart from in exceptional circumstances. 5.2 Employees leaving the Trust before the end of the leave year will be subject to the conditions outlined in 17.2 and 17.3 of this Policy. Examples Additional Annual Leave Calculations Employee 1: Request to buy 2 weeks extra leave with the deductions spread across 12 months. Their annual salary is 27,625 with 25% unsocial hours. Without a deduction: 27, % = 34, Annual Salary with 25% Unsocial hours (Gross) 34,531.25/ 12 = Basic (Gross) per month With a deduction: 27, % = 34, Annual Salary with 25% Unsocial hours (Gross) 34,531.25/ 12 = Basic (Gross) per month Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 23 of 26

24 34,531.25/ = Weekly amount (Gross) X 2 = 1, / 12 = Deduction per month = New basic (Gross) per month Tax, National Insurance and pension superannuation deductions will then be made from the new basic (reduced) salary. Employee 2: Request to buy 1 week extra leave with the deduction spread across 6 months. Their annual salary is 21,798. Without a deduction: 21,798 / 12 = 1, Basic (Gross) per month With the deduction: 21,798 / 12 = 1, Basic (Gross) per month 21,798 / = Weekly amount (Gross) / 6 = Deduction per month 1, = New basic (Gross) per month Tax, National Insurance and pension superannuation deductions will then be made from the new basic (reduced) salary. Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 24 of 26

25 SECTION A (To be completed by employee) Appendix 5: Buying Additional Annual Leave Form Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 25 of 26

26 Surname: Assignment Number: Directorate: First name: Job Title: Base: Leave Year: April 20 /March 20 Number of Weeks/Hours Requested: 1 (37.5) 2 (75) If known please specify when the additional leave will be taken: I understand that if I opt to buy additional annual leave that this will result in a reduction in my salary for the relevant leave year. I understand that by completing and submitting this form for additional annual leave that, if approved, I constitute my consent to have my salary adjusted accordingly. I agree to abide by the procedures outlined in the Annual Leave Procedure. Signed: Date: SECTION B (To be completed by Assistant Director/Head of Service) I authorise the employee to take Weeks/Hours additional annual leave which will be deducted from their salary. Name: Job Title: Signed: Date: Completed form to be sent by the manager to the relevant ESR inbox (ESRforms.GM@NWAS.nhs.uk, ESRforms.CAM@nwas.nhs.uk, ESRforms.CAL@nwas.nhs.uk) SECTION C (To be completed by Payroll) Updated by: Date: Annual Leave and Public Holiday Procedure Page: 26 of 26