Bank holiday confirmed for date of Queen Elizabeth II funeral

The government has announced that Monday 19 September 2022 will be a national bank holiday in all parts of the UK for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s State Funeral. This will also mark the last day of the period of national mourning following The Queen’s death on 8 September 2022.

Government guidance provides that this bank holiday can be treated the same as other bank holidays, which means that some employers may choose to treat this the same as other additional bank holidays. There is no statutory right to time off so employers will need to review their contracts of employment to determine whether their staff are entitled to time off on this additional bank holiday, for example:

  • contracts which say employees have a right to 20 days’ annual leave plus time off on 8 public/bank holidays, (or 19 days plus 9 bank holidays in Scotland) where the bank holidays are listed and there is no extra flexibility in the wording, will not have an automatic right to time off
  • contracts which give a right to 20 days’ annual leave plus 8 public/bank holidays but do not list the bank holidays gives the employer some flexibility to move leave around, i.e. the employer in this scenario could give staff this extra day off but require them to work on another public/bank holiday
  • employees who have a contractual right to all public/bank holidays will be entitled to the extra day off
  • employees whose contracts give them 28 days’ annual leave including all public/bank holidays have a right to the extra day’s leave but it will be deducted from their 28 days’ annual leave so effectively they will have fewer days on which to ‘choose’ to take leave.

Employers should check their contracts carefully for any other flexibility in the wording such as “8 public/bank holidays as listed, or other days as determined by us” which may allow the employer to give staff the extra day off but require them to work on another public/bank holiday.

Of course, where contracts do not include an automatic right to time off, employers can choose to give their employees an additional day of paid leave or staff can make an annual leave request in the usual way. In a press release published on 10 September 2022, the government encourages employers to respond sensitively to requests from workers who wish to take time off. Employers should be mindful that national events can affect individuals in different ways and can have an impact on their personal health and wellbeing.

For workers who are required to work on the day of the funeral, there are no statutory rules regarding extra pay on bank holidays. This will depend on the wording of the worker’s contract and any custom and practice that has been set on previous bank holidays.

The government currently has no plans for this additional bank holiday to mark The Queen’s funeral to become an annual bank holiday. It is yet to be decided if there will be a bank holiday for the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III which is not expected to take place for some time.

Absence Management

Employers often find absence a tricky thing to manage. There is a need to balance compassion for the individual, the realities of life (we all get ill or injured at some point) and the sound running of the business.

With scenes of chaos at airports and stories of flights cancelled at the last minute, Covid once again is to blame for disrupting our lives. In this case, it is due to high absence levels as a result of employees forced to isolate due to the risk of spreading a highly contagious virus that has affected so many people.

So what should employers do about absences, especially where the employee must stay off but feels fine?

The importance of a procedure

A robust absence management procedure is essential. It can help employers gain an overview of absence levels, manage excessive absences and put in place reasonable adjustments for disabled employees.

Setting expectations

Key to managing absence is setting out expectations. Reasonable expectations of average absence levels are good to set out and act as triggers for action should absence levels exceed them. What is reasonable, of course, will depend on the organisation, the nature of the work and the individual employee. However, setting general standards (that are adjusted on an individual basis) is still a valuable exercise.

Adjusting expectations

Some employees may have high absence levels due to a condition that affects their ability to perform day-to-day tasks on a long-term basis and, as such, constitute a disability under the Equality Act 2010. Where this is the case, employers must act carefully so as not to treat these employees less favourably than their colleagues.

Where there is a disability, the Equality Act 2010 requires employers to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate the disability to enable the employee to perform their duties. These reasonable adjustments also apply to absence triggers, and depending on the nature and severity of the disability, these may need to be either adjusted for the individual circumstances or removed all together if they are impossible for the employee to meet.

Removing absences entirely from consideration

Alternatively, some employees may have to be absent due to a requirement placed upon them, such as Covid isolation or where the employer has sent the employee home from work. Where this is the case, it would not be appropriate to include these absences as part of the employees overall absence figures, as in reality they had no choice but to be away from work and it could be viewed as ‘punishment’ for following the rules set down by either the Government, or now that isolation is no longer legally required, the employer.

Another situation that requires absences to be excluded from absence triggers are temporary conditions, such as pregnancy, that can impact an employee’s ability to attend work consistently. Again, to these employees, absence triggers should not be applied, as it would be discriminatory to do so. It is also worth noting that an employee who has suffered a miscarriage remains protected as though still pregnant for two weeks after the event.

Finally, absences that are connected with family friendly leave, such as emergency time off for dependents, parental bereavement leave, etc, should also not be included in absence triggers. This is due to the fact these rights are a) protected in law and therefore employees should not suffer a detriment from exercising them, and b) these are not sickness absences, but connected to a situation with another.