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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

annual leave

48 replies

ACSlater · 05/04/2015 23:39

I suppose this isn't really AIBU but bear with me.

This has been brought about by a lady on maternity who also has school aged children. She is due back (after AL) in late July.

A round robin email was sent a few months back to everyone to see who wants leave during school holidays and this lady was included. She didn't request any leave in the holidays but is now unhappy that parents haven't received priority. Everything has been first come first served.

I'm not that bothered either way as even if we parents had priority we couldn't have all holidays.

How does everyone else feel?

OP posts:

AwkwardSquad · 06/04/2015 07:19

"I dont understand why people who (a) are not teachers and (b) dont have children, would want tk have their holiday in achool holidays, and pay far far more!"

Because DP's job involves looking after other people's children and we are restricted to school holidays. We'd love to have more flexibility and the option to pay less, but there you are.

shewept · 06/04/2015 08:22

Sibu . In every job I have been in the August holidays are now booked up. Being a parent should not get you any priority.

As for the not checking emails, this lady will know how holidays are booked at the company and if it was important she should have sorted it out. She has obviously checked her email as she knows about it. Clearly I am the only one that thought about this on mat leave. I was returning to work in September, but wanted holidays at the end of the next march so called and booked them whole on mat leave. I knew I needed the time off so didn't wait til I got back just in case.

tobysmum77 · 06/04/2015 08:28

They are being unreasonable expecting her to check work emails when on maternity leave.

So yabu op

KenDoddsDadsDog · 06/04/2015 08:32

Why should parents have priority ? As a parent I have to book in time if I want leave.
My business is currently booking leave for summer 2016.

tobysmum77 · 06/04/2015 08:34

That's lovely ken but in my job I have always been able to book leave whenever I want, I am the only person in the team with school aged children anyway so it isn't really a big problem. If they changed this situation and expected someone on mat leave to read their emails that isn't fair.

DisappointedOne · 06/04/2015 08:36

Has this lady had no Keeping In Touch days?

WhataMistakeaToMakea · 06/04/2015 08:39

She is NBU to not check emails on maternity leave.

She should have been called/ letter if they were doing something that would affect her on her return. No way I would check work email (although would check personal emails) when on maternity leave.

Perhaps she was busy taking care of a baby and not being in that working environment forgot it would be the usual time for people to be deciding annual leave etc?

ilovesooty · 06/04/2015 08:40

It doesn't say anywhere that the situation or system has been changed. If she wanted the annual leave at a specific time she should have requested it. If she didn't want to read her work emails she needed to get in touch to find out the time frame for the request.

Amummyatlast · 06/04/2015 08:43

Agree that she should not be expected to check work emails. I have access to my work emails from home, but I would not have checked them on mat leave even if I could have (they redirected my emails while I was on leave). All work related news was sent to my personal email address by HR.

However, she is unreasonable to expect to be given priority for annual leave just because she has kids.

KenDoddsDadsDog · 06/04/2015 08:47

What's lovely ?
I can book leave when I want as well. I'm just not entitled enough to assume that as I have children I should have school holidays off.
Checking emails on mat leave is not an expectation but if you're nedding that leave you could have requested it.

KenDoddsDadsDog · 06/04/2015 08:48

*needing

Parker231 · 06/04/2015 08:58

Our office operates a "first come, first served" system for booking holidays. If someone with school aged children doesn't book the school holidays quick enough - they don't get their requested time off. We all know the system - each year some people are happy, others disappointed regardless of whether you have children or not.

FryOneFatManic · 06/04/2015 09:14

I have DCs and when I was an office manager all leave, including mine, was first come first served. We didn't have any set time frames for booking leave, but school holidays were not reserved for parents.

Luckily my team were easy enough and in fact we all negotiated with each other about leave, and people usually got the leave they wanted. It did help that I was the only one with DCs at that point.

A friend who was also an office manager had a real bad time with one team member. This person would really throw her toys out the pram if she didn't get exactly the leave she wanted, and in that team there were several parents so there had to be some give and take. Friend had to get firm and it eventually involved HR, who supported my friend's stance.

In this case, I can see that actually the firm should not have relied on email to communicate the leave situation, unless the email was sent to the person's private email address. As there's no obligation to read work emails on maternity leave, and even KIT days need to be agreed. OTOH, as it doesn't appear the system has changed for booking leave, then the person could have taken the initiative and put her request in, not leaving it until she returned and then making a fuss about needing school holidays.

tobysmum77 · 06/04/2015 09:35

A company can't expect any employee to double-guess what emails are sent out. Why was an email needed if employees are able to double guess the situation?

BikeRunSki · 06/04/2015 10:07

I don't think the issue is around whether parents should have priority for school holidays, rather than poor line management of the lady on maternity leave. I speak as a manager and a mother of 2 - 1 v well managed pg/ml and one very bad one.

Goodadvice1980 · 06/04/2015 10:37

OP, was the round robin email sent to her work email address or a private one? Guess that might make a bit of a difference.

sunniest · 06/04/2015 11:16

There are so many reasons why childless people may wish to take their leave in the school holidays. Maybe their partner works for one of the many businesses that have shut down periods during August when everyone is expected to take their leave. Perhaps they want to spend time with children in their extended family or help out with child care arrangements. Perhaps they are feeling burnt out and desperate for a break. Perhaps they want to go to a music festival. Perhaps their extended family have a timeshare villa somewhere hot (I wish!). Surely all requests should be treated equally.

Icimoi · 06/04/2015 11:24

Perhaps she was busy taking care of a baby and not being in that working environment forgot it would be the usual time for people to be deciding annual leave etc?

Really, there's a limit to how much people on maternity leave can expect to be spoon-fed. OK, you shouldn't be expected to check work emails, but if you plan to go back to work you really cannot expect to have an automatic entitlement to take leave whenever you want to without checking in advance. It doesn't take much to remember that holidays need to be booked in advance and your colleagues are likely to be doing that. It would take two minutes for the woman in question to phone HR and check, and indeed she could probably have booked time off before she went on maternity leave.

jimsdoll · 06/04/2015 11:33

I think she's bu. I'm currently on maternity leave and have put in request for holidays and days off. If someone had already requested those days well then that's my problem for not doing it sooner.

jimsdoll · 06/04/2015 11:42

And surely as soon as u know u need holidays u ask for them. You don't wait for someone to ask do u need hols

TwoAndTwoEqualsChaos · 06/04/2015 11:46

I think Fry's last paragraph has it. If the email went to a personal address and the system hasn't changed since before her leave started, it is her fault. If the email went to a work address she could access from home, it would depend on the arrangements made about contact. A good line manager would have sorted out the preferred communication for this sort of thing before the leave began, anyway.

FWIW, and for whatever reason, I think she didn't want to/couldn't be bothered to sort it out before she came back and then though she could use the trump card (but entirely separate issue) of school holidays/parents to get what she wanted.

When I went on leave, I was left off the day-to-day emails but important ones like this were sent to a personal account and contractual stuff was sent in the post, as well.

zeezeek · 06/04/2015 12:17

As she's not back until the end of July, then surely taking more leave during August would be taking the piss a bit, especially if there are other staff there who have been covering her work, maybe, and are now in need of a break.

Stillwishihadabs · 06/04/2015 12:29

I agree zeezeek. When I came back from mat leave in March I discovered I couldn't have my leave in July, I sucked it up.....so should she. This year I am moving jobs at the end of April so will need to be very careful about leave over the summer.

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