Do we need to allow staff the Diamond Jubilee bank holiday off work?

Also see today’s guest blog post – Tips for avoiding employee holiday scheduling issues

The Diamond Jubilee takes place this year, marking 60 years of The Queen’s reign. This year the early May Bank Holiday will be moved back to Monday the 4th of June, joining an additional bank holiday for the Jubilee on Tuesday the 5th to make a long weekend. Schools in England and Wales will be able to close on these bank holidays.

Organising their leave for the months ahead, some employees may want to know if they will be given the Tuesday bank holiday off and whether they will be paid.

Employers must have genuine business reasons for requiring staff to work on bank holidays and this should be clearly provided for in the contract. Without contractual agreement, employers must gain express content from their staff if requiring them to work the holiday.

Whether your staff are entitled to receive this extra bank holiday as a paid day off will depend on the holiday entitlement explanation in their contracts of employment; if you are unsure, you should check the exact wording in the contract. This contract should make clear how many paid days leave employees receive per year (the statutory minimum is 28 days) and whether bank holidays are included within this number. Any entitlement should be the same for part-time staff on a pro-rata basis.

It’s also worth bearing in mind what your time-off policy was last year for the royal wedding, as well as whether preventing staff from having the bank holiday off work could affect staff morale. Whatever your decision, the jubilee will be a big public event so it’s best to ensure staff are fully aware of expectations by making an official announcement soon.

For more information see Direct Gov’s guide to holiday entitlements.

What are the bank holidays for 2012?

6 April (Good Friday), 9 April (Easter Monday), 7 May (Early May Bank Holiday), 4 June (Spring Bank Holiday), 5 June (Queen’s Diamond Jubilee), 27 August (Summer Bank Holiday), Christmas Day, Boxing Day.

View all bank holidays until 2015 here.

Photo credit: Simon Howden

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