Bank holidays for a 4 day week--is it fair to dock my holiday?

[YellowRoseofTexas]

Going back to work in August at four days per week (I was previously 5 days) and have just received my contract. It says that both holiday time and public holidays are prorated, so I now have 20 days of holiday, and 6.5 paid bank holidays (rather than 8). Makes sense. However, it says that the 1.5 days of bank holidays after my entitlement must come out of my annual leave.

Seems slightly unfair, or is this standard? I would think that the 1.5 days would just be unpaid days, as it's not an option for me to work or not work that day...the office is closed.

I know this is only 1.5 days we're talking about, but I'm curious, does this strike anyone else as odd?

The same happens to me some years. I work Monday-Wednesday so the years where more bank holidays, say Christmas Day & Boxing Day, fall at the beginning of the week I go over my BH pro-rated entitlement and have to make it up from annual leave.

Other years when they fall on my non-working days then I have extra annual leave to take. So, it all evens out.

Working 4 days I suppose there's less opportunity for bank holidays to fall on days you're not in so you might always have to use the annual leave.

Ok, cool. Thanks to you both. Good to know this is how it works other places, and that it has the potential to even out.

Afraid your employer is right here

They can ask you to take holiday whenever they feel like it as long as they are giving your the stat amounts so its sucks but its legal.

I know someone who was offered a job with 20 days holiday - in the teeny tiny print it mentioned that of the 20 days, 8 were bank holidays. When she queried it, she was told that they weren't statutory.