In January 2024, there were some changes to Working Time Regulations regarding holiday carry over. The changes we talk about here relate specifically to holiday that accrued during the Covid years. This post is a summary of the changes and the actions employers need to take.
1. Previous rules around Working Time Regulations
Before 1 January 2024, the “Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendments) Regulation 2020” allowed workers who could not take their full holiday entitlement due to being affected by Covid-19 to carry over 4 weeks of their annual leave into the next 2 years.
Before the enforcement of this regulation, an employer needed to ensure workers take their full statutory annual leave within the leave entitlement year.
The “Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulation 2020” gave employers more flexibility to allow workers to carry over their holiday.
2. What changes happened to the Working Time Regulations in January 2024?
From 1st January 2024, the Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 became obsolete.
Workers had until 31st March 2024 to use up any accrued holidays that had not been taken due to Covid-19.
3. Actions required by employers to comply with the Working Time Regulations
This legislation came into effect on 1 January 2024 and deadline for using accrued holiday has now past. You need to ensure that no one has been allowed to continue to carry forward holiday that was accrued during Covid years.
If you have any questions regarding holiday carry over, please do contact us.