Guest Article by Joseph L. Bolger, Managing Director at ESA Consultants
If you have any questions for Joseph, you can reach him at <[email protected]> or drop us your suggestion as to what we should write about next!
Holidays. It’s one of those words that excites and irritates. If you employ a person to work for you – whether it be part time, full time, casual, fixed term, zero hours in your business or home – you are obligated to pay holiday pay. But what exactly are the legalities around salon staff holiday entitlement?
Salon Staff Holiday Entitlement: What There Is To Know
- If an employee works a minimum of 1365 hours in a year they get 4 working weeks holidays.
- If an employee works less than 1365 hours in a year you calculate all the hours they worked and multiply it by 8% simple.
Example 1: Let’s say Mary works 20 hours per week for 26 weeks (Jan to June). To determine their annual leave entitlement, you calculate 520 hours x 8% = 41.6 hours holidays x her rate of pay, including any commission, bonus etc. but not tips. If they are out sick, their holiday entitlement continues!
Example 2: Mary was off in March due to illness, that month is included as an average.
“Can I Block Holidays?”
Yes, if you have a contract in place you can set periods that no one can take holidays. You can refuse holidays if you are:
- Not provided with proper notice from staff, and/or
- It causes serious problems for your business.
Related | The Ins And Outs Of Writing A Salon/Spa Procedure Manual
“Can I Pay For Holidays Not Taken?”
No, unless the employee is leaving your employment.
Example 1: Mary is leaving work to start with another salon on Friday. She still has three days holidays to take. You can pay her for these three days.
Example 2: Let’s say Ben has three holiday days to take but says he would just prefer the money as he has taken 17 days this year and won’t have the money to go anywhere else. You cannot pay Ben for holidays not taken.
“What If They Don’t Take Holidays?”
Check to see if your coffee is cold, because hell may be…! This doesn’t tend to be a problem for a lot of employers, but it may be for you. You have an obligation to structure your business, without prejudice to exceptional circumstances, to ensure your employees take their holidays.
Special Note: Bank Holidays
Your staff should get a total of 9 bank holidays, but casual staff must work 40 hours in the 5 weeks leading up to the bank holiday to be entitled to it. If they are out sick – ordinary sickness – you pay them the first 6 months of bank holidays. If it’s work related you pay them 12 months of bank holidays.
What If My Employee Says: “I Just Won A Holiday” Or “My Partner Booked It”?
You can refuse. If you are not given proper notice you are within your rights to refuse. Equally, you are entitled to seek evidence of the booking. Now, what if a staff member say they got sick while away? Firstly, seek evidence of their travel itinerary and ask for medical certs.
“What If They Actually Did Get Sick While On Holidays?”
If they are genuinely sick while on holidays, then they are entitled to use the time off later (without pay).
About The Pay
You must pay holiday pay in advance of the holiday and it must be shown on their payslips.
Thanks for reading!
#LetsGrow
– Joseph L. Bolger is Managing Director at ESA Consultants. For more information on salon staff holiday entitlement or to get in touch with him, visit www.esa.ie/ or contact [email protected].
