Part-timers and BH entitlement

[EmmaStone]

How does your company calculate BH entitlement for part-timers? I've worked PT for many years and it's always been calculated the same way: the number of BHs are pro-rated, added to my holiday allowance and I then deduct a day's holiday for any BHs that fall on my working days. When I had a Wednesday as a non working day, it meant I needed to use my 'normal' holiday to cover BHs, but when I had a Monday as a non working day, I actually ended up with more holiday.

A member of my team (who has recently gone PT) thinks this is really unfair and says it has never been calculated that way anywhere they've worked before. We discussed BHs basically being completely disregarded from holidays altogether (our office shouldn't need to open on BHs, so everyone would be off).

So I'm curious how other places do it.

Where i work it's calculated as as separate entitlement to annual leave in hours.
So full time Bank Holiday entitlement is pro rata for part
timers so if you work 80% of a working week hours wise then youll get 80% of a full timers bank holiday entitlement. Then if BH fall on a NWD nothing deducted from those hours but if it falls on a usual working day hours are deducted.
Pretty usual and fair.

You dont end up with more holiday days calculating it your way; you end up with more choice of when to take the holidays instead.

You'd still be entitled to the same number of holidays but if one of your working days was a Monday you'd need to take that as a holiday whereas if it's not a working day you'd be able to take it on a day of your choice.

Where I work it is calculated how you said. I work 0.6, so get 60% of BHs rounded up to the nearest half day. I'm guessing she works Mondays. If BHs were excluded, any Monday workers would have to work less days for the same pay. If she feels hard done by having to use leave to cover BHs, could you suggest she works a different day in some BH weeks to make up the time without losing holiday.

Any there any other methods used?

And thank you for those that have responded, I thought this method seems fairest (although I understand any PTer who works a Monday may feel they get hammered!!).

Where I work it’s all based on hours , so whole holiday allocation then the additional hours for bank holidays added on. You then deduct the hours from your allocation for bank holidays etc. like you part timers get the bank holidays at pro rata rate if they work a day that falls on a bank holiday they deduct it from there holiday allocation if it’s a non working day then those hours are there for them to use when they want. Full time staff just deduct hours as well for any bank holiday.

IME most companies will do it pro rata. Its just kind of tough luck if it means you need to use “normal” holidays to cover all the BHs, you get the same hols as everyone else, just you may not get the same choice when you take them. Lors of people don’t get to choose their holidays though, teachers are the main example. I worked part tIme for years always had to work a Monday. It’s just the way the cookie crumbles.

Some companies will do it as your friend moots but not that many, and arguably that means part timers getting more holiday than full timers, and unfair to full timers

Yes, always done the way you described. It isn't that they get more holiday by having Monday as non-working day, but that they get more choice over when to take that holiday.

Everywhere I've worked about 5 places it's the same as the op.

You don't get more holiday at all just as explained more choice of when you take it.

Just think of it as you are entitled to 1/5 of your working hours off. So if full time M-F 35 hours / 7 hours a day you get 1/5 off which is 7 hours (the actual bank holiday day).

if you are part time you also get 1/5 off working hours off to, so if you work 25 hours a week you are entitled to 5 hours off.

If the BH is on a day you are meant to work and you work 8 hours on that day you owe the company 3 hours and this needs to be deducted from your holiday allowance.

If the BH is on a day you don’t work and you do your normal days / hours that week then company owes you 5 hours and need to add it to your holiday allowance.

Same as you. I'm a part timer who works Mondays and it doesn't bother me. I would normally be taking those weeks anyway so happy to work 2 daya in those weeks rather than 3, they normally fall around school holidays too so no problem from my side.

This was what I did when I worked PT

That calculation is correct and it’s true that those PT workers who don’t work a Monday do seem to have more A/L as they don’t need book the bank holidays that fall on Mondays and can then use them whenever they like it. As another user said, it’s tough luck really unless they want to play the game and choose different working days that benefit them.

I've been battling this with my place of work since 2021 and it has now been acknowledged, without actually saying it, that I was right all along (thanks to some well informed Mumsnetters especially @dementedpixie ). My colleague, same hours works Monday Tuesday and Wednesday and I work Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Since I changed to this working pattern back in 2021 my colleague has had annual leave, pro rata bank holidays and the bank holidays that fall on Monday, her working day. Therefore she has had more paid days off than I have. I have taken my entitlement of 17 days, 14 days annual leave and 3 pro rata bank holidays every year. She has had 17 days and the additional bank holidays which for example the year when the Queen died, 23 days paid leave. I don't know what the outcome will be but it has now been found that we should get 5 not 3 Bank holidays a year.

Part timers are legally entitled to the same holidays pro rata as full time staff.

I think the problem with working Mondays for part timers is that they only have a pro rata amount of bank holiday leave but every bank holiday they are deducted a whole day's leave (it's fine if they work 5 shorter days). If you work 3 days and get 60% of the entitlement you end up having less holiday to take when you choose. I know the Queen's funeral bank holiday shafted a few colleagues - they had planned their leave for the rest of the year but lost a couple of hours making them short.

I don't think there is a fairer way to do it though? Allow a PT member of staff to swap their day off on a BH week? Personally, I think regularly swapping days off around isn't fair on full timers who do not get that option (unless they are allowed to compress their week).

Mine was calculated the same way as yours.

They should work an extra day in the week not to lose holiday. One year when Xmas Day and Boxing Day were Monday and Tuesday my colleague worked the Wednesday morning only. I worked my 2 1/2 days as normal. That irked me beyond belief.

Like this. And I think it is the fairest method. I don't work Mondays so end up with more leave to use (and even more depending on when Xmas and NY fall).

Before this was introduced all part timers wanted to work Mondays as they got more BH off.

When I was part time it was calculated how you said

The NHS (biggest employer in the country) do it your way, OP.

My current and previous employers both calculate it the way you’ve described OP.

I’ve always avoided working Mondays since going PT, I know you get the same amount of time off overall but I don’t like having to spend “extra” hours on bank holidays!

My holiday is in hours, I work 90% (full time is 5x7hr days, I have Wednesday afternoons off), so I get 90% of the bank holidays added to my AL allowance. I then have to book bank holidays off through my AL.

For bank holidays on a day I normally work it costs 7hrs (full day). For bank holidays on a Wednesday I normally only work 3.5 hrs then so only need to use 3.5hrs (half day)

I work part time and work on mondays so a lot of bank holidays fall on working days. These days are automatically taken of my holiday allowance.

So if, for example I get 30 days holidays per year, and there are five bank holidays that fall on Mondays, then I only have 25 days I can book any time.

But, just to cover everything, our workplace closes for three additional days between Christmas and new year. We don’t get those added to annual leave, just get them off if that’s a working day, which feels fine to me.