A new push to increase the minimum holiday entitlement for all UK workers has been launched, targeting 30 days including bank holidays. The petition, filed on the parliamentary website, urges the Labour Party government to make this change mandatory.
Petition Details
Steve Dixon initiated the petition, which closes on October 14. It calls for employers to provide an extra two days off per year, raising the total to 30 days including bank holidays for full-time workers. The petition argues that this would benefit public spending, as people tend to spend more on their days off, and improve mental health for full-time workers.
If the petition reaches 10,000 signatures, the government will respond. At 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.
Current Legal Entitlement
Under current rules, almost all workers are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year, known as statutory leave entitlement. For most workers on a five-day week, this amounts to at least 28 days of paid annual leave. Part-time workers who work regular hours throughout the year are also entitled to at least 5.6 weeks of paid holiday, though this may be fewer than 28 days. For example, someone working three days a week gets at least 16.8 days off.
The statutory paid holiday entitlement is capped at 28 days. For instance, staff working six days a week are only entitled to 28 days of paid holiday. Additionally, bank holidays do not have to be given as paid leave, though employers can choose to include them as part of the statutory annual leave.
