Chapter 1 - Annual leave
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY UNDER REVIEW
Appendices
- Annual leave application form (not currently available)
- Calculation of annual leave allowances |
- This chapter sets out the procedures to be followed in the management of annual leave. Guidance on the calculation of payment of cash compensation for untaken annual leave and recovery of salary for over-taken annual leave is available from the National Pay and Benefits Business Centre, Payroll Team for CPS London Staff.
- The granting of annual leave is a matter for departmental discretion. Annual leave is made up of both statutory and contractual leave. Statutory leave includes bank holidays and privilege days (see paragraph 52 of this chapter). Contractual leave is the remainder of the annual leave.
- Staff should be encouraged to take their full annual leave allowance and, subject to official requirements, should be allowed some measure of selection of the period to be taken as leave. Staff cannot, however, claim to take annual leave at any particular period of the year or take leave without permission. Unauthorised absences should be dealt with in accordance with the Departmental Disciplinary Procedures (Volume 2 Chapter 3).
- Staff will only be recalled from annual leave when it is essential to do so.
- Under the Working Time Regulations, employees are entitled to 4 weeks paid annual leave. This is not additional to contractual entitlements. Taking contractual paid leave in a particular year therefore counts against the entitlement under the regulations.
- The annual leave entitlement provided by the regulations may only be taken in the leave year that it is due. The minimum period may not be replaced by a payment in lieu, except where employment is terminated. The Working Time Directive does not provide any flexibility on the annual leave entitlement and that is reflected in the regulations.
- The annual leave year for a permanent member of staff will run from the first day of the month in which their birthday falls. Staff who enter the Department on permanent transfer should have their leave year altered to bring it into line with the CPS leave year (staff on loan from another Government Department will keep their existing leave year).
- On appointment staff are issued with an annual leave application form (Appendix 1) showing their initial annual leave allowance.
- In calculating annual leave, half a day's annual leave means attendance for half the net hours (i.e. excluding meal breaks for staff conditioned to gross hours) which would normally be worked on the day concerned.
- All requests for annual leave must be approved by a line manager. Except in exceptional circumstances, all annual leave must be approved in advance.
- Staff may carry over up to 10 days of their annual leave allowance to the next annual leave year. Similarly, staff may anticipate up to 10 days of their annual leave allowance with line management approval at any time during the leave year. Amounts in excess of 10 days (anticipation or carry over) must be referred to the Area Business Manager (ABM) or the National Pay and Benefits Business Centre.
- Part-time staff may carry over an amount proportionate to their annual leave allowance. Details on how to calculate this amount are outlined in Appendix 2, paragraph 12.
- Staff have no automatic right to any form of compensation if, for any reason, they do not take their full annual leave allowance.
- Staff who are specifically prevented by line management from taking their full annual leave in the year in which it is earned, may carry over the balance into the next leave year. This provision does not override paragraph 2 or 3 - i.e. staff are not entitled to take leave at any particular period of the year - nor does it apply where staff voluntarily forgo any part of their annual leave allowance.
- Where this carry over would result in an excessive amount of untaken leave, ABMs and HQ Directors have discretion to offer staff payment at standard cash compensation rates as an alternative to the leave which they have been prevented from taking.
- Cash compensation is only appropriate for any untaken leave in excess of the standard carry over amount of 10 days. Such situations should be exceptional and this discretion will therefore be used sparingly. It is emphasised that staff are under no obligation to accept management's offer.
- Cash compensation payments authorised under the terms of this chapter must not exceed a ceiling of 0.25% of the Area's or HQ Directorate's total expenditure on salaries (excluding Superannuation Charges).
- Areas/HQ Directorates should keep records of all payments authorised for audit and monitoring purposes.
- For staff leaving the service, payment for untaken leave should only be made in the following circumstances:
- where the last day of service is known well in advance (as is usual with normal and premature retirement and redundancy), payment should be made only for annual leave which an employee has been specifically prevented from taking by management. This situation should arise only in exceptional circumstances;
- where staff resign they may convert up to 10 days of any untaken leave into a cash payment. Any other leave outstanding should be taken before the last day of service and may only be converted into cash where for management reasons, an employee has been specifically prevented from taking it;
- when an employee is medically retired whilst on sick absence, cash compensation should be allowed only for the amount of leave untaken (subject to the usual rules on carry-over set out in paragraph 7) when the sick absence leading to the retirement began.
- Employees dismissed for misconduct will be paid for any leave outstanding.
- Every effort should be made to ensure that staff who are due to retire take whatever annual leave is owing to them. Wherever possible, therefore, the last day of attendance should be fixed to take into account any untaken leave. If this is not possible the arrangements set out in paragraphs 19 or 21 apply. These arrangements are not intended to enable staff to accumulate annual leave with the intention of converting it into a cash payment.
- Staff leaving the service who have exceeded their annual leave allowance should be required to refund from salary an amount equivalent to the number of days leave overtaken calculated in accordance with Appendix 2, paragraph 2.
- Employees under notice of dismissal should be required to take all outstanding leave within the period before their last day of service. Payment should be made only for annual leave which the employee has been specifically prevented from taking by management.
- Payment in full should be made for all leave untaken at the date of death in service having calculated, if appropriate, the annual leave allowance for a part year as per Appendix 2, paragraph 2. Recovery in respect of annual leave exceeded should be waived.
- Payments or refunds of pay for days of untaken or over-taken leave should be based on the full daily rate of pay - i.e. inclusive of all regular allowances and other emoluments in the nature of pay, but exclusive of overtime and other allowances of a reimbursement nature - which would be applicable on the date of termination of service; or which would have been applicable in the case of staff whose pay has been reduced - e.g. sick absence on half pay or pension rate. Payments for untaken annual leave are subject to the normal statutory deductions but not for PCSPS contribution purposes.
- Where any employee on leaving the service is given a cash payment in lieu of untaken leave, the payment will not be regarded as a pensionable emolument and service will reckon only up to the last day of service for the purposes of the PCSPS. Similarly, a refund made in respect of excess annual leave will not affect the rate of pensionable pay and reckonable service will be determined up to the last day of service with no adjustment being made in respect of the period of excess leave to which the refund relates.
- Individual annual leave allowances are determined by the level/pay band and length of service. For full-time staff, the minimum is 25 days, and the maximum is 30 days. The paragraphs below detail the annual leave allowances for staff by level/pay band and show when a member of staff would be entitled to a higher annual leave allowance. All levels of staff are entitled to 30 days annual leave on completion of 8 years' service.
- 25 days, then
- 28 days after 4 years’ service, then
- 30 days annual leave after completion of 8 years' service.
- 30 days annual leave.
- Part-time staff should be given a proportion of the corresponding full-time leave allowance calculated on the number of days or hours worked in the week and expressed in days or hours accordingly.
- The calculation of annual leave in hours should normally be calculated in days. In exceptional circumstances where the working pattern is so variable that it is impractical to calculate it in days, it shall be calculated in hours.
- Details on how to calculate annual leave allowances for part-time staff are outlined in Appendix 2, paragraph 5.
- Staff on secondment retain their annual leave allowance.
- Staff on short notice and standby appointments do not qualify for annual leave.
- Staff who formally retire and are re-employed in a lower pay band, have their annual leave allowance determined in relation to the new pay band. However, subject to the provisions of paragraph 36, previous service may reckon in the determination of the annual leave allowance which may apply in the new pay band.
- Employees who undertake full-time external training on official duty terms will be expected to take their annual leave allowance during vacation periods.
- The following types of service reckon as qualifying service for the purposes of determining annual leave allowances:
- full-time or part-time service with a department or agency under the Government of Great Britain whether as a non-industrial or industrial civil servant (including any periods of secondment);
- full-time or part-time service with the Post Office up to 30 September 1969 and the Post Office Corporation since 1 October 1969;
- forces service, undertaken between two otherwise unbroken periods of civil service, in the following: war time service with HM Forces or Merchant Navy or National Service (including National Service with the Merchant Navy);
- in the case of a permanent appointment, a previous period of casual service in the Civil Service provided there has been no break in service exceeding 12 months.
- paid sickness absence;
- paid maternity leave, and any period covered by Statutory Maternity Pay following which the employee returns to duty;
- periods of unpaid maternity leave, where an employee does not qualify for paid maternity leave.
- The following circumstances disqualify service from reckoning for a higher annual leave allowance:
- termination of service for misconduct or inefficiency;
- except on re-instatement, where there has been a break of longer than 12 months.
- Staff who are re-instated are entitled to count their previous service as qualifying service irrespective of the length of the break.
- The following periods do not reckon as qualifying service in the determination of annual leave allowances:
- periods of unpaid sickness absence;
- periods of unpaid maternity leave (following paid maternity leave);
- periods of unpaid special leave.
- Such periods do not break otherwise continuous service for the purpose of determining annual leave allowances.
- A cash payment in lieu of annual leave may not be regarded as reckonable service for annual leave purposes.
- Where an employee joins, rejoins or leaves the Department part way through the leave year, the allowance is proportionate to the period of service in that year. Details on how to calculate this allowance are outlined in Appendix 2, paragraph 2.
- Where an employee becomes eligible for a higher annual leave allowance part way through a leave year, the amount of the additional allowance applicable is proportionate to the part of the leave year remaining. Details of how to calculate this allowance are outlined in Appendix 2, paragraph 3.
- Where an employee changes from full-time to part-time working, or vice-versa, part way through a leave year, the leave allowance for the year in which the change is effected is the sum of the proportion of the allowance related to the period of full-time work and the proportion related to the period of part-time work, deducting from this total the actual amount of leave taken up to the point of change to establish the balance of the allowance applicable to the remainder of the year. Details of how to calculate this allowance are outlined in Appendix 2, paragraph 8.
- The value of a day's leave is not determined by the period when it is earned but by the period when it is taken. Leave earned but untaken and carried forward on a change of working status assumes a value related to the new status.
- Annual leave allowances continue to accrue in the following situations:
- during periods of sickness absence on full pay;
- during paid maternity/adoption leave;
- during periods of unpaid maternity/adoption leave (where the employee is not entitled to paid maternity/adoption leave);
- during periods of secondment;
- during periods of special leave with pay.
- periods of sickness absence on reduced or nil pay;
- periods of unpaid maternity/adoption leave (following paid maternity/adoption leave);
- periods of special leave without pay.
- If an employee falls sick during a period of annual leave, the days so affected will be recorded as sickness absence and not as annual leave provided that
- the Department is notified promptly and;
- the member of staff produces a self-certificate or a statement by a qualified medical practitioner, or dentist, covering the days in question.
- Annual leave may follow a period of sickness absence. In the absence of any further certificates (self or doctor's) the assumption would be that the employee is fit for duty.
- Wherever possible outstanding annual leave should be taken before a career break commences. Where this is not possible a maximum of 10 days may be carried over on return to duty. If the employee has over-taken leave, the appropriate deduction should be made from salary before the career break commences.
- Fixed term appointees are entitled to the same amount of annual leave as permanent staff, however, their allowance should be pro-rated in accordance with the length of their contract. The provision as set out in paragraph 26 will also apply.
- Full-time staff are entitled to ten and half public holidays and privilege days per annum in addition to their normal annual leave allowance.
- This entitlement to public holidays and privilege days continues during any period of secondment.
- The public holidays and privilege days are:
- Public holidays:
- Privilege days:
- Staff who are required to work on a public holiday or privilege day should be allowed another day off in lieu, within a calendar year.
- A public holiday or privilege day that falls during an absence on annual leave should not be counted against the annual leave allowance.
- Both full time and part time staff should agree with management in advance the days they will take off as their public holidays and privilege days. Where a member of staff has agreed to work on a public holiday or privilege day but becomes incapacitated, the absence will be recorded as sick absence and a day in lieu will be granted.
- If an employee falls sick on a day on which they have previously agreed with management that they would take as a public holiday or privilege day, and that day falls in the middle of a period of sickness absence, the day(s) will be treated as sickness absence and the employee will NOT be eligible for time off in lieu.
- If the public holiday or privilege day(s) previously notified fall at the beginning or at the end of a period of sickness absence, the day(s) will NOT be recorded as sickness absence and again, the employee will NOT be eligible for time off in lieu.
Introduction
Principles
Procedures
Annual leave entitlements
The annual leave year
Recording annual leave
Anticipation of leave and carry over from one year to the next
Untaken leave
Cash compensation for staff leaving the service
Annual leave allowances
Group 1: All pay bands up to and including Level E (non CCP cadre)
Group 2: Senior Civil Service and CCP cadre:
Individuals will qualify for a higher leave allowance from the point in their leave year when the appropriate number of years is attained. Details on how to calculate the extra annual leave allowance due for a part leave year are set out in Appendix 2, paragraph 3.
Annual leave allowances for part-time staff
Staff on secondment
Annual leave for staff on short notice and standby appointments
Annual leave allowance for staff re-employed in a lower level/pay band after formal retirement
Annual leave for staff on full-time external training
Qualifying service
The following also reckon:
Annual leave allowances in special circumstances
Accrual
It does not accrue in the following situations:
Sickness during or preceding annual leave
Annual leave and career breaks
Fixed term appointments
Public holidays and privilege days
New Year's Day
Good Friday
Easter Monday
May Day Bank Holiday
Late May Bank Holiday
Late Summer Bank Holiday
Christmas Day
Boxing Day
Maundy Thursday afternoon
the Queen's Birthday and
an additional day at Christmas
The Queen's Birthday holiday is observed on the Tuesday after the Late May Bank Holiday. The date of the additional day at Christmas is announced, in inform, at the beginning of the year in question.
Sickness absence on public holidays and privilege days
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