Question: I would like to ask four questions: 1. How many days leave should one be getting 2. If the company I work for closes down over December, can they ask us to put in leave for that period as well. 3. If we have to go to the dentist or doctor or anywhere, for even an hour, we have to use our leave for that i.e. putting in an hour or 2 hours leave – is that legal? 4. The owners of the business went away for the weekend and had to leave at 12 the friday afternoon – they made us put in leave for that half day which I dont think is fair because it was not our choice. Hoping you can help with some information.

Answer: Leave allocation may vary depending on factors such as industry, bargaining council agreements, union agreements, etc. However, in general, employees are allocated 15 leave days per annum. A company can request staff to take their main annual leave over a December period if this is related to the business operations, e.g. Factories may shut down over the December period and staff are requested to take their leave accordingly. Teachers are forced to take their leave during school holiday periods. However, I do not believe that it is legal or just to force you to use up annual leave accrual if you are sick. All employees are allocated 30 sick days over a 36 month period and payment of such leave is normally dependant on a valid sick note or a note from your practitioner confirming your scheduled appointment. Again, I do not believe that they can force you to use up your annual leave accrual if they suddenly decide they are going away for the weekend.

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