Can bank holidays be included in a workers statutory leave entitlement?
Yes. The Working Time Regulations 1998 permit the inclusion of bank holidays in a worker’s statutory entitlement to four weeks’ paid annual holiday, although this does not mean that an employer can unilaterally override any express or implied contractual terms to the contrary. The government has, however, indicated that it proposes to extend the right to four weeks’ paid annual holiday ‘by making it additional to bank holiday entitlement’. However, it is unclear whether it intends to introduce a right to paid bank holidays, or simply to remove employers’ ability to include bank holidays within workers’ statutory minimum holiday entitlement. Are part-time workers entitled to bank holidays? Under the Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000, a part-time worker has the right not to be treated less favourably than a comparable full-timer. This includes entitlement to bank holidays. Where an employer includes bank holidays in the statutory minimum entitle
