Employers are being encouraged to pay workers for an extra day of leave over the June bank holiday weekend.The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is worried that penny-pinching bosses will expect employees to work as normal during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, which run from 2 to 5 June.
Brendan Barber, General Secretary, said: “Sadly hundreds of thousands of staff are likely to miss out on the festivities because some tight-fisted employers are refusing to recognise the Queen’s Jubilee and intend to treat the Tuesday as a normal working day.”
Last year, the TUC asked the Government to change the minimum statutory annual leave entitlement to ensure all employees could benefit from additional bank holidays. However, the request was not met and some businesses made workers use their annual leave or carry out their usual hours over the Royal Wedding period.
Barber added: “The annoyance and ill-will that will be caused by forcing staff to work while everyone else is out having a nice time will far outweigh any benefits from one extra day in the office. There is still time for employers to do the right thing and give staff a day’s paid leave on Tuesday 5 June.”
