Holidays denied after maternity leave

[jamiejols]

Returning to work soon. Went on a family holiday in June just for a week to kind of trial what it would be like with a baby. We had the best time that we hoped to go away again in September. I checked with my colleague (only me and her who work together) and she confirmed she wasn't off when I wanted to request and that it was absolutely fine with her. I would of only been back to work a few weeks. I have stacks of holidays to take when I go back. Was hoping to go away September as we have plans all through august weekends and a lot less expensive/a bit cooler. My request was denied right away with the reason that I would of only been back a few weeks. I then requested to add a week on to the end of my leave (no one else off then) and that was declined also. Do I stand anywhere with this or is it just the case that I have to be back a certain amount of time before I can take leave? Feel a bit gutted about it as it's the only chance we would of had at a holiday.

I thought you went on holiday in Jine though or did that not count? Not really your only chance to have a holiday is it? Not sure where you stand legally though and I'm probably missing the point...

June sorry!

Can you go back later or is it the end of your mat leave entitlement or ask to add all your accrued leave on the end.
This is not a good sign that they will be reasonable about using your accrued leave tbh. When does your leave year roll over?

Can you escalate the requests _ refusing both is unreasonable imo.

Just be careful that you get to take all of your leave. You could email back stating how many days you have to use before March (or whenever) and ask when would be good to take them. Your manager may not have realised quite how much leave you have, and you'll have to take it at some point.

Unfortunately there is no legal right to take holiday when you want so they are entitled to refuse for business reasons. They do have to allow you to take your leave at some point though so agree with a pp to email setting out how much leave you have and asking when will be convenient to take it.

They already know how many holidays I have left to take. So will have to take just over 7 weeks from September until the end of March. I meant it will be the only chance we get for the rest of the year for a summer holiday. I think this is the easiest age to take DS so want to make the most of it. Yes I requested to add the week on to the rest of my leave before I return but was declined and I was told I needed to return as planned and then further entitlement arranged when I return.

When are you actually due back? Broadly speaking, it's probably sensible to not take leave straight away as they may feel you need to settle in - you might find this beneficial too. Do make sure you get your full entitlement though.

I can see your employer's POV. It's not good to have time off just as you're starting to get back into the swing of things. And with most contracts, you need to take holiday at the employer's convenience - you can't always take leave whenever you want it.

I think a rational conversation with whoever approves your hols would be good, so you can agree between you when you'll take the 7 weeks (7 weeks is a generous holiday allowance!) and get them booked in to the end of the year.
Are you allowed to carry any over?

I don't usually get 7 weeks, it's only because prior to maternity leave I was full time and I'm only returning part time, therefore I've accrued full time annual leave while I was off so it's worked out as 7 and a half weeks in part time hours if that makes sense.

And no they don't allow any to be carried over unless extreme circumstances.

If you are being treated less favourably than other employees due to having taken maternity leave then that is direct discrimination. Would another employee asking for that week off under the same circumstances be granted the leave or is it a difficult week for some reason?

Do you have a union?

Do you have it in writing that they are declining you the opportunity to take the leave that you are entitled to? If not then an email on the lines of "please could you confirm in writing that you are denying me the opportunity to take the Annual Leave that I am entitled to because of the fact of having taken maternity leave. I will need to consult with an appropriate representative about how to respond to this and I need to be sure I haven't misunderstood the situation."

If the manager has half a brain they will immediately insist that you misunderstood and will make sure you get an opportunity to take the leave asap. Maybe not in the week you want it, but it has to happen sooner or later. You are 100% entitled to the leave. You don't have the right to dictate when it happens, so long as all employees are treated fairly.

It's not a difficult week, there is nobody else off otherwise I wouldn't of asked. I'm pretty sure another employee asking for that week off wouldn't be a problem, it was declined because 'you will of only been back 2 weeks'. Unfortunately I'm not in the union (that is something I must do for future though).

You need to talk to them about the amount of leave that you must take by March they have already declined 2 weeks for no brilliant reason so you should discuss how it can be taken.

and I can only recommend you join a union. The fact you’ve only been back 2 weeks is not a good reason to deny leave unless there is a clear business case

I'll have been back 4 weeks and I'm taking 10 days off for a pre-planned holiday, I don't think the amount of time you are back should make a difference if it doesn't impact the business in any way. If you had been on long term sick and come back and had a holiday booked they would still have to honour it so I see no difference. As others have said, highlight how much leave you have and the fact you are trying to spread it out, otherwise they might lose you for a good few weeks at a time which wouldn't be great for them!

This is good advice. And join the union today.

I can actually see the reasoning that they want you to come back, settle in, complete handover etc before you take more time off. Coming in for a week or two and then being off again is pretty disruptive. They can choose when you take you're leave, so I don't think you have much recourse.

However, with 7 and half weeks leave to take between September and March, that's pretty much a week's leave each month. So I'd ask them to agree a schedule of how you are going to take your leave in that time. When they sit and look at it, they might find they prefer for you to take one week/month, rather than taking chunks of 2/3/4 weeks later in the year.

They seem a bit unreasonable to me to be honest. I’ll have had a year off come mid November but then taking me accrued holiday (ours runs from Jan). So won’t be back until 5th Jan.

Any holiday dates I want will be automatically authorised similar to pre booked holiday if I was a new starter.

Join the Union!

How long have you had off for mat leave? You are allowed an extra 26 weeks leave on top of your mat leave..Statutory Maternity Leave
If you are employed and pregnant, you are entitled to 52 weeks (1 year) of maternity leave, no matter how long you've worked for your employer.

This is made up of 26 weeks of ordinary maternity leave and 26 weeks of additional maternity leave.

You have a range of rights during this period and can also request that your employer provides flexible working arrangements if you decide to return to work at the end of your leave.

Your employment terms (for example, your pension contributions) are protected while you're on Statutory Maternity Leave.

If you're made redundant while on Statutory Maternity Leave, you also have extra rights.
www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/finding-out/maternity-and-paternity-benefits-and-leave/#:~:text=Statutory%20Maternity%20Leave,weeks%20of%20additional%20maternity%20leave.

Employers are dicks and love to exercise their power over us.