20 days annual leave is Dickensian

[Palacelife]

Most firms now start on 25. I think 20 just smacks of a mean firm and not a place you want to be. AIBU?

Unlimited annual leave only works in a small number of sectors / workplaces and is, of course, not truly unlimited in the sense of coming and going as you please - requests still need to be approved.

Oddly, one of the unintended consequences of unlimited holiday is that employees actually take LESS holiday than they should. Having an actual allocated amount encourages people to use it.

or if you were a domestic servant maybe one Sunday a month.

20th Feb to 20th Sept = 7 months out of 12.... Take annual entitlement=20 days

7/12 ×20 = 11 days ish earned. (Plus any bank holidays actually between those dates)

Unlimited annual leave?! Or do you mean unpaid?

Interesting

Bank Holidays Act 1871 - Wikipedia

4 Bank Holidays were introduced

And in 1938, the Holidays with pay act was introduced

1 week annual leave (Thanks to the Unions)

TUC | History Online (unionhistory.info)

The TUC first began to campaign for a paid holiday for workers in 1911. Following the passing of an International Labour Convention (ILO) on holidays in 1936, lobbying of the Baldwin Government was reviewed. A committee of inquiry report in 1938 recommended the gradual introduction of a statutory right to holidays in July 1938. The Holidays with Pay Act gave workers, whose minimum rates of wages were fixed by trade boards, the right to one weeks holiday per year. The TUC, which was calling for 2 weeks' holiday for all workers, was disappointed in the limited legislation.

This TUC leaflet, circulated to workers covered by Trade Boards, urges them to join trade unions to enforce holiday rights and to improve conditions.

@Palacelife your post makes no sense. You don't say where in the world you are referring to

I am surprised how many never heard of unlimited AL.
I don't think it's that common in UK yet tbf.

YANBU. I was once offered a job with 20 days plus BHs and turned it down (standard in my industry is 25 plus BHs). It was one of about 3 red flags but that was the main one.

This is how unlimited annual leave works in the US:
https://www.bamboohr.com/blog/benefits-limitations-unlimited-vacation#:~:text=According%20to%20reporting%20by%20the,off%20when%20PTO%20is%20unlimited.

You can request as much holiday time as you want. It’s paid. But it needs approving by your manager. In reality, most places won’t approve more than a set amount (3 - 6 weeks according to the article). And most employees won’t request as much as they would if they had a set number of days to use.

Luxembourg look good in this list

List of minimum annual leave by country - Wikipedia

55 year olds and above get 36 days plus 11 Bank Holidays

Thanks @NumberTheory

From 2021

Why it's so hard for US workers to ask for time off - BBC Worklife

From that article:

In an unlimited PTO policy, employees don't begin the year with a fixed number of paid days off. Instead, they request days off from their manager, who will approve or deny PTO at their discretion.

I wouldn’t work somewhere with that little paid holiday.

I get 35 days paid plus Bank Holidays. Three of the 35 days have to be taken between Christmas and NY as the whole business shuts down. And FT hours are 35.

I got offered a job recently but they thought it was ok to give 22 days but 2 weeks at Xmas they were closed and expected me to take it out of my annual leave! Needless to say I refused the job offer!😫

DIckensian is overstating it, as that's 4 weeks a year plus bank holidays. When we were in North America in the 70s the standard was about a fortnight.

The legal limit in the UK is 28 days all-in, so where are you that it's 20?

An employer is allowed to dictate that 8 of the 28 days are taken over the bank holidays each year, leaving you 20 to take "when you want."

"Dickensian"...... 🙄🙄FFS what hyperbole. And ridiculously incorrect.

I have 25 + NBH

I wouldn't work somewhere that gives 20 + NBH

I don’t think 20 + BH is necessarily shit as I live in America and there’s no guaranteed paid leave here except 6 national holidays (if you have a full time job). Most companies do offer 10 days with pay a year.

I think 30 days would be better as that’s about a week every couple of months, and everyone could use that.

My last job was 25+BH, going up to 31 for length of service, you could also buy or sell up to 5 days. I thought that was pretty average.

@StripeyDeckchair I don't think comparing to USA is the way to "feel better" about it. USA have terrible worker policies and A/L and worker rights. Doesn't make bad A/L leave here any better even if we do get more comparatively. That's a bit of whataboutery and sidesteps the issue of poor working conditions over here. In fact if we as a nation did start comparing to the USA it will encourage UK workers to "be happy with their lot" and could even negatively impact our existing annual leave as a culture.

Depends on the attitude of the firm.

I used to work for a company that started with 25 days plus BH and increased with years of service. I worked every Sunday for 3 years, most BHs and I don't know anyone that took more than 15 days per year - everyone was paid out carryover in Feb.

I currently work for an employer that gives 20 days, but everyone in the company takes the full 20 (and is encouraged to do so), plus I've often asked to use a day's leave for medical appts/childcare and been told not to worry, keep my holiday for holiday.

I know which employer I prefer!

I imagine the newspapers of the time were full of doom for companies.
Oh this company wont be able to afford to give a whole week of paid holiday. It'll go bust if they are forced to do this.

Just like when the minimum wage came in and subsequent rises in min wage.
Also see extra bank holidays. Every single time they are suggested, some company or other or even the government say, we cant afford it, it will cost the country billions. Yet over the last few years there has been a few extra bank holidays and far as I know no one went bankrupt because of them.

We get 30 days plus bank holidays plus you can buy 5 more. I take it all and would struggle to cope with less. I'd never work for somewhere with 20 days