Christmas leave priority

I was just confirming what you had written originally as the PP said you may have to work bank holidays.

So you're off xmas day, boxing day and monday 28th? Are you supposed to be working Sunday 27th?

In my company the Christmas leave booking opens up in October, and then everyone can request one day off. Then after I think two weeks the rest is opened up and people can request more.

This notion that parents should take priority is ridiculous. You choose to have kids, and you choose to work for a company where working Christmas is part of the deal.

Rules like those are why people end up resenting working parents.

What do they do if there's only 5 slots available but 8 people with kids under 7 want the time off?

What's the priority then.??

So a grandparent to a newborn baby gets priority over the parent of an 8 year old? How ridiculous. Only one of the 6 grandparents my kids have would use that to actually see their grandkids on Christmas. Surely if you're going to split it by kids ages it should be those that are old enough to be home alone during the day as most parents need the time off for childcare.

But equally we're told that the planet can't sustain population growth so which is it ?

What happens if I book my time with my 8-year-old. And then someone pops along with a 6-year-old and ask for the same day. Does my day get cancelled?

I have a child but I think this totally and utterly ridiculous. An attempt to be fair that just has the effect of pissing everyone off; awful management. First come first served is also unfair. The best way of doing this is simply to ask people what they want to take off, and if there’s insufficient numbers, allocate the time off equally so everyone has a decent number of days off.

What about if you say you’re a Christian who finds it integral to your faith to get ready for the arrival of the baby Jesus. And, then celebrate it. It is a Christian high day and holiday, after all. Ok, mammon has adopted it too.

Surely that would trump someone who just wants to enjoy their grand-tots play with tinsel.

Not very Christmassy.

This 100pc
My organisation operates 24/7 365 days a year and I was amazed at the number of people who thought it was fair that they always had it off as they were parents.
I am a parent too and feel leave should be rostered fairly.

The fairest way is a rota, if you got your first choice of leave last year, it's someone else's turn this year. Everyone has people they want to spend time with.

The only possible exception is perhaps single parents who might not have access to childcare in the Christmas holidays, but this should only really be for BH. As you have the BH off, it doesn't really apply here. Maybe for Christmas Eve as childcare places tend to close at lunchtime.

That's not a bad block of time off in fairness, what period do they class as 'Christmas leave' isn't it just the period between Christmas day and new year?

It's indirect age discrimination. Young workers are less likely to have children, same for older workers who are less likely to have children under seven, etc

Indirect discrimination about sexual orientation, homosexuals are less likely to have kids.

Besides, how do they prove anyone has children or not?

What an awful idea, OP.

It should be rotation regardless of those factors.

It's actually made me really cross! Some people may be childless despite desperately wanting children and this is just adding insult to injury. Other single people may have elderly and ailing parents whose last Christmas it might be and they are children to them.

The only fair system is a rotation.

Anyone saying businesses need to support parents are missing the fact that they don't do that with holidays priorities etc. They push that support on colleagues who have nothing to do with it all.
That's not business supporting parents.

I'm not sure it's right that grandparents with grandchildren under 7 trump parents with kids over 7 😯

i suppose its not technically - BUT - you could probably say its age discrimination if you are young and don't have kids you can't get time off - or you could try argue its religious discrimination based on Christmas being of special importance to you / religious importance to you and you are being sidelined for people with kids !

I mean this is clutching - but either way its not fair and i say that as someone who has little kids!

when i didnt have kids i needed to catch a flight home to see my family and always needed to book the time off so i wasnt in a differnet country alone for Christmas

id be tempted to lie and say yaeh i have a 2 year old

That is such a weird policy.

In our house that would mean dh couldn’t get the day off but mil could as sil has a child under 8.

Rota is the best way to deal with it and then let staff swap if they want to via an anonymous system so no pressure can be applied.

So if someone doesn’t mind working they can put up a annon post will swap 25th off in exchange for X date.

It's okay, because they all trump kids or grandparents that have an actual 7 year old. They're not even listed 😂😂😂

So you get a 14, 15 and 16 year old, and get priority over the person with a 7 year old 😂😂😂

This is ridiculously unfair.
OP as you say this is public sector, are you in a union?
The only fair way to to ask everyone what leave they would like and see if there is sufficient cover and, if not, check who worked last year and give them priority. That’s what I do when sorting it for my team. Preference is not given to parents or grandparents as everyone’s reason for wanting to take leave is the most important for them.

I don't know, I wasn't talking about the planet. I don't think those two statements are mutually exclusive, though.

That’s crazy to prioritise grandparents over kids who are over 7!
It should be:

1. people with children under 11
2. people with children under 18
3. people with grandchildren under 11
4. everyone else

although honestly I’m not sure if grandchildren at all should get priority or just lumped in with everyone else

Its a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. Easily defended.