AIBU to want to use my remaining annual leave?

[olderthanyouthink]

I’m 30 weeks pregnant and as it stands I will work up till 38 weeks when I have booked 2 weeks annual leave and then I will go on maternity leave (I know baby could come early and things could change).

Seeing as I’ve known all year that I’m pregnant so can’t afford to go on away holiday and it might be a good idea to save some leave so I can stop working but still be paid I have saved most of my AL up.

So now I have:

• AL allowance is 25 days
• Taken or booked 14 days AL (this doesn’t include bank holidays, there are 6 before ML and 2 during)
• 11 days AL remaining to take
• 44 days left at work

I thought it would be nice to use my leave to work part time towards the end because I thought things would be wrapping up but now I don’t think I’d be allowed to take it because there are two projects I’ve been working on that are cutting it close to the wire and they have not hired anyone to take over and I’m the only person who does what I do in the company (they could hire a freelancer I suppose).

My line manager isn’t particularly impressed that I get to have time of for appointments (and the number of appointments) and classes as well, had to send the gov website to prove it’s the law. (I’m the first pregnant employee). It was a pain to get just one day AL approved the other week.

They have to let me take the minimum of 28 days off, right?
So, if I just request, for example, every Friday off from next week till my 2 weeks AL/ML and maybe the odd Monday to make up the days they can’t decline them only reschedule them?
Can I be paid for the remaining days above the minimum that they won’t approve?

They definitely have to let you take it rather than pay you for it, but don't necessarily have to let you take it in the manner you want. Whether you have to take it before your ML or carry it over will depend on your contract

They could only really push it back closer to my leaving really, I'm not that fussed atm if that's what they want to do.

Holiday is use it of lose it, can't be carried over.

6 more days would take me up to the minimum I think but I have 11 left was wondering if the 5 over the minimum could be paid in lieu, I guess that's up to them.

If you don't take it now then it will be added to the end of your ML. It's the law that you can carry over accrued holidays while on ML

It depends on when your leave year is. Either you take it or you carry it over (you can carry it over when on ML even if contract says otherwise). The contractual days could possibly be paid if you both agree.

Forgot to say - if the days you are asking for are no good then it can of course be refused and either you take another day or keep it for after your mat leave.

I didn't think I could carry over the leftover holiday but I would have a full years worth of AL when ML was over. The leave year is jan-dec.

The reason I think my requests for AL would be declined is because they need me to still be working so shuffling them to another date wouldn't help that much I don't think.

Your Annual Leave has to be carried over if you're on ML, it's the law. I took a full year's leave, spanning over two holiday years, so I would've lost a lot of holiday if that wasn't the case!

I don't think they can refuse.

To be honest I thought I would stop t 38 weeks... but as i got larger and more tired I stopped at 37 weeks and worked 4 day weeks for a month before hand and was the best thing I could have done. Baby was on time so I had lots of rest and time to get things ready and fit in appointments.

I believe it's unlawful to prevent you carrying over your entitlement due to maternity leave, particularly if they refuse to let you take it beforehand

olderthanyouthink at my work taking every Friday off for a month or longer would be classed as a pattern and would be classed as a change in work pattern. Maybe ask for different days off. One week Friday one week Tuesday etc.

happygummi tyre, I have no idea how I'll be, ideally I'd work from home a lot for the last bit but idk if that's likely (wfh unheard of though)

Planner I'll bare that in mind but nothing is that formal at my work, they didn't have a maternity policy until they needed one for me and they got an external HR person for me to talk to but I don't think she's that familiar with company policy because there's no such thing.

I'll email the HR person but if she needs to clarify with my boss then that might be fun.

True not tyre

They can refuse to let you book your leave but as everyone has said, they do have to let you carry it over due to mat leave. They can just say they can't accommodate the dates you want due to the project workload, and that they would have let you use it later in the year but as you're on mat leave you won't be able to, so it'll have to carry over and you can use it when you get back.

You shouldn't really have waited until 8 weeks beforehand to ask for 1 or 2 days off every week (and starting immediately I assume). As you say, you've known you were pregnant all year so why didn't you put this leave request in months ago instead of waiting until the last minute?

Ask for a 1-1 with your manager and ask what the arrangements are to cover your maternity leave and hand over your projects. Put it to them that you propose to use your annual leave to enable you to work part time so you can carry on close to your due date and complete the contracts. Ask what arrangements they propose for your keeping in touch days. Point out that you are looking to avoid a situation where you are signed off sick in the last weeks and have to leave them in the lurch. Wednesdays are a good day to have off as it will enable you to pace yourself.