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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that Good Friday and a few other days in the uk are bank holidays?

83 replies

NeedsAsockamnesty · 19/04/2014 10:53

Just had the weirdest conversation about bank holidays.

The other person insisted that Good Friday Easter Monday and Christmas days are not 'proper official bank holidays' in the uk and these days it's ok to just decide they are not.

So is this correct or am I being reasonable thinking that they are bank holidays?

OP posts:
ilovepowerhoop · 19/04/2014 16:18

she is entitled to 5.6 weeks worth of holiday - the bank holidays can be part of the 5.6 weeks or over and above that, he cannot give her less than 5.6 weeks.

She may have to raise a grievance against her employer if he refuses to give her the correct amount of holiday that she is legally entitles to.

www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/entitlement

www.gov.uk/solve-workplace-dispute/formal-procedures

ilovepowerhoop · 19/04/2014 16:23

www.gov.uk/bank-holidays

Good Friday and Easter Monday are definitely bank holidays so he is talking rubbish. Why else would he be closing the business on those days?

Original poster
NeedsAsockamnesty · 19/04/2014 16:37

She says he came out with something about them being religious days that some people class as bank holidays but some people don't.

The entire situation is very confusing and it's hard to make sense of it because it all sounds so strange.

It's obvious he's breaking the law I just really couldn't get my head around his explanation or reasoning

OP posts:
ilovepowerhoop · 19/04/2014 16:39

he's talking crap basically to try and get out of paying her

KatieKaye · 19/04/2014 16:49

Pimf - Christmas Day is most definitely a public holiday in Scotland!!! And has been since the 50s.

ilovepowerhoop · 19/04/2014 17:10

www.gov.uk/bank-holidays#scotland - Christmas day is a bank holiday in Scotland. We seem to get 9 instead of 8 due to getting the 2nd January as a holiday as well

Pipbin · 19/04/2014 17:43

*Pipbin, where do you get that it is illegal for a shop to open on Easter Sunday?

Because until very recently it was. I couldn't find out the exact date it changed but the news report below shows it was still illegal in 2010, only 4 years ago.

www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/7546120/Easter-2010-Garden-centres-test-Sunday-trading-laws.html*

It IS STILL THE LAW look at the link I posted to the government website.

Original poster
NeedsAsockamnesty · 19/04/2014 17:46

Tesco near me is never open on Easter Sunday

OP posts:
Pipbin · 19/04/2014 18:00

No it won't do as it's against the law still.

As for bank holidays and time off..... as far as I remember back in the early 90s, when I started full time work, you had 20 days holiday but your employer could make you take the bank holidays out of that time. Later they increased the number of days holiday to include the bank holidays so it went to 28 days. That way, even if you have to take the bank holidays from your holiday allowance you still have 20 days.

southwest1 · 19/04/2014 18:09

When I was in Northern Ireland Good Friday wasn't counted as a bank holiday where I worked, they had that on the Tuesday instead. Really annoyed me as I didn't know and worked a night shift going into Good Friday and was expecting 8 hours at double pay.

ilovepowerhoop · 19/04/2014 18:26

I'm in Scotland and my Tesco is open 24 hours as usual every day over the bank holiday period including Sunday

KatieKaye · 19/04/2014 19:27

My civil service department did not close for the majority of bank holidays (other than Christmas/Boxing Day and 1st/2nd Jan). Bank holidays were added into your annual leave allowance but there was no question
of additional rates of pay if you chose to work those days.

FryOneFatManic · 19/04/2014 19:35

It is still the law that shops over a certain size must close on Easter Sunday. I am quite frankly astonished that so many people, after all this time, still don't seem to realise and will try to go to these shops on Easter Sunday.

DP works in a garden centre, a place where lots of people like to waste a little time. And so often, we've passed by his workplace on our way to a National Trust property on Easter Sunday to see people driving into the car park in the clear expectation that it would be open. DP says they've even had letters of complaint about this!

ilovepowerhoop · 19/04/2014 19:38

only in England though

KatieKaye · 19/04/2014 20:34

It's not a UK law though, Fry.
Shops and National Trust properties will be open on Easter Sunday here in Scotland, so I can totally understand why people would expect English NT properties to also be open.

Cornettoninja · 19/04/2014 20:42

He is in the wrong then. It makes no odds what a holiday is called - there are 8 statutory holiday days in a year and he needs to pay them if he's only providing the minimum.

www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/entitlement your friend needs to either print off that page or send it to him pointing out it's a government website. If he's still not convinced (dickhead that he sounds) he can ring HMRC himself.

Frankly just paying is a lot cheaper than getting taken to a tribunal.

Cornettoninja · 19/04/2014 20:45

Oh and because I'm rude I'd make him sit down and tick off the bank holidays he pays to show where those 8 days are paid to make up the remainder of my statutory leave.

Pipbin · 19/04/2014 20:51

Here is an article about when the law to allow Sunday opening changed: news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/28/newsid_2536000/2536115.stm

John Lewis and Marks & Sparks were against it because they still held close to their Jewish roots and opposed on the idea that Sunday should be a special day.

FryOneFatManic · 19/04/2014 21:25

KatieKaye It wasn't the NT property that was closed, though, it was my DP's place of work as we passed it en route to the NT property, that was closed, with people trying to get in there. DP's place of work does have to close on Easter Sunday.

ddubsgirl77 · 19/04/2014 21:37

christmas day if faĺls on a day im contracted to work we get paid even tho shop is closed but easter sunday we (if u work sundays) you can work it take it as a holiday day or take it unpaid

Original poster
NeedsAsockamnesty · 19/04/2014 21:52

She said earlier that not once since she's been there (think about 10 years) has she ever had a bank holiday as extra.

When she takes Christmas Day and Boxing Day off it gets deducted from her 4 weeks if she's already had the 4 weeks then she does not get paid.

I'm shocked that in this day and age employers can get away with this

Apparently he even describes her as casual staff despite her working the same shifts on the same days for a decade

OP posts:
Cornettoninja · 19/04/2014 22:02

I don't think being casual makes a difference as long as she's working the hours to give her full time annual leave.

Is she definitely working enough hours? If she works under some months then he may have a point because bank holidays can be prorated.

Tbh I think I'd be on the phone to ACAS on Tuesday finding out what my options are. Employers get away with it because people don't challenge them.

It's a stressful thing to take them on, and sometimes people's options are limited if they think it'll make their workplace uncomfortable or they don't have many other options for looking for a new job.

Original poster
NeedsAsockamnesty · 19/04/2014 22:20

No way is she casual, when she first told me this (ages ago) she used my phone to call acas who confirmed she's not, the lady nearly laughed down the phone.

And yes she works enough time the only times her hours reduce are if the company shuts for a bank holiday or she's on annual leave.

Her annual leave has always been a bit odd tbh she's not allowed to take just a day it has to be a week in one go and a few years back when she was on ML he tried to refuse to allow her to accrue AL and she's only allowed to take each week after 3 months of work and then has to work another 3 months before she can take the next week so she can't even go on a two week break unless she has not had time off for 6 months

OP posts:
FryOneFatManic · 19/04/2014 22:27

Your friend needs proper legal advice. It all sounds wrong to me.

TOADfan · 19/04/2014 23:38

I dont know but here in NI its business as usual on Friday and Sunday for small shops (double time) , Monday is a public holiday and Tuesday a bank holiday.