Annual leave

[Kae6155]

Hi,

i recently had to have back surgery which has still left me with some degree of pain, I had to drive 40 miles to get to work and back 4 days a week. After a discussion with the service manager she agreed that I can do Monday in office Tuesday and Wednesday at home and Thursday in the office to help with the pain that driving causes and the need to sit in a office chair all day, I have been doing this for almost a year now.

the last couple of time I have requested annual leave on my office working day I have been asked by the assistant manager that if I want annual leave on my office day I should be swapping my home working for an office day as she wants me in the office for 2 days a week

I am now feeling that my annual leave is becoming dependent on me swapping my days around

am I correct in thinking that this is not correct and should not be asked of me as my annual is my annual leave and the whole idea of annual leave is not to be present in the office and that she cannot use my homeworking days as an absence from the office as I work just as hard at home and never ask anyone to do any work nor do I leave any work for anyone.

thoughts on this please as I don’t know what to do

If they want/need you in the office 2 days a week then it seems like a reasonable request that you do a different day if you've got annual leave booked. Unless there's a medical reason still why you can't manage 2 consecutive days of driving?

For many jobs there is a benefit to being in the office some of the time. If that is the case with yours, I can see they may have a point in wanting you to swap your in office days when you are taking annual leave for part of the week.

If you are not happy with this, put in a flexible working request to ask that you permanently WFH on set days each week.

Are you in a union?

It doesn’t seem reasonable to me, annual leave means you aren’t working that day and yes, within reason, it’s yours to use as you like. Most people request the days that benefit them; I hate late shifts so will try and book my annual leave the days/weeks I’m on lates. My manager doesn’t then tell me I must work a late shift on a day I should be doing an early.

It depends if you think using up annual leave is worth it when it appears you can swap your days around without inconveniencing anyone. If your manager insists on you swapping your days when using annual leave , then point this out to them and say that in future you are happy to swap days but won’t be using your annual leave allocation in this way.

It's perfectly reasonable. Think yiyrself lucky they let you wfh 2 days a week. Don't rock the boat, it may tip over!

Have you had a desk assessment and/or occupational health referral? There are many adjustments e.g. ergonomic equipment that might help minimise the pain you experience in the office

Are you deliberately booking AL for the days when you’re supposed to be in the office? If so then I agree that’s not a reasonable thing to do and if I was your manager I would want to stop that. Ultimately if your contract says your place of work is the office, then they have a right to insist that you turn up there as often as they like. Two days a week sounds very reasonable to me.

If this isn’t sustainable for you long term, it might be sensible to start thinking about asking for a fully remote contract, or else finding a job closer to home.

You're not being denied your annual leave. You're being asked to ensure that you maintain 2 days per week in the office for the weeks or partial weeks that you are working.
Not necessarily unreasonable request.

Are the days in the office set in stone or is it 2 days? If the former, it's unreasonable. If the latter, I'm on the fence. There's no legitimate reason for you to change your days other than tracking and micromanagement realistically but it's not unreasonable as such. Just pointless.

Additionally, it causes an unnecessary atmosphere about booking days off. No, you're not being denied but there should be no tense or negative feeling when booking one. The fact there is suggests it's not a good place to work or your manager has a problem.

You’re using your annual leave deliberately to avoid being in the office and that’s unreasonable. If you need a temporary adjustment for medical reasons then you need to discuss with your manager

I guess it depends on a number of factors.

You have been wfh due to back pain following an operation nearly a year ago. Is this likely to be permanent? Is your employer aware or did they assume it's a temporary measure?

To me it's an adjustment to accommodate your condition. If you are on holiday on, e.g. Monday, it's logical to say that you could drive to work on Tuesday as you didn't do the journey on Monday.

However if you have health/medical issues that mean it's not possible then you need to agree these with your company.

Yes, 2 days isn't much at all but in your situation it's difficult. Is there anyone you could share a ride with until you're recovered? Xx