Back

Our offices will be closed over the Easter weekend from 5:30pm on Thursday 28 March. We will reopen as usual at 9am on Tuesday 2 April.

Get in Touch Menu

Royal wedding gives bosses a public holiday headache

17 February 2011

The extra bank holiday on 29 April for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is going to be expensive whichever way you look at it, says Willan’s Employment team. The cost to the economy has been estimated at between £2.9 billion and £6 billion, depending on who you listen to.

For many employers, particular small ones, the extra day means a considerable cost to the business. While no doubt many will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion, an extra day’s pay will represent a significant hit to productivity for very many businesses .

The fact is that, contrary to popular opinion, employees do not have an automatic right to be paid for bank holidays. Whether or not an employer has to give his staff an extra day’s paid leave on that day (or indeed to give leave on bank holidays at all) depends on the terms of their employment contract.

What we commonly refer to as ‘bank’ or ‘public’ holidays are not recognised in an employee’s statutory rights.

For example, if contracts provide for ‘twenty days’ holiday plus bank holidays’ then staff may be entitled to the royal wedding day as well as the eight usual bank holidays.

But if contracts simply state ‘twenty-eight days’ holiday per year”, then there may not be a contractual right. The employer might, for example, then choose to close down on the wedding day but ask employees to take the day out of their annual holiday allowance.

The best approach for employers is to look carefully at their contractual provisions and, if necessary, seek advice to find out what their obligations are.  In any event, they will need to communicate their plans clearly and in good time to their staff and ensure that the issue is treated consistently across the workforce.

If you need clear and pragmatic legal advice, we’re here to help so please get in touch.

Contact us

Disclaimer: All legal information is correct at the time of publication but please be aware that laws may change over time. This article contains general legal information but should not be relied upon as legal advice. Please seek professional legal advice about your specific situation - contact us; we’d be delighted to help.
Contact
Nick Cox LLB (Hons)
Consultant, solicitor
View profile
Nick Cox
Related services
Share this article
Resources to help

Related articles

Changes to company law – what businesses need to know

Corporate

This week, initial changes to company law – including the biggest changes to Companies House since it began – will start to take effect. Here, our corporate and commercial team…

Chris Wills LLB (Hons)
Partner

Unearthing the implicit duty of cooperation in commercial contracts

Commercial

In the world of business, contracts are the bedrock upon which deals are built. These carefully crafted documents are a testament to the mutual understanding between parties, outlining their respective…

Richard Holland BA (Hons)
Senior associate, solicitor

Why sole director companies should check articles of association

Corporate

A recent case has highlighted the importance of ensuring a company is incorporated with carefully drafted articles of association, if there is only one director. All limited companies must have…

Helen Howes LLM
Associate, solicitor
Contact us