Annual Leave National Standard Order, 2018

L.N. 271 of 2018

EMPLOYMENT AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT

(CAP. 452)

Annual Leave National Standard Order, 2018

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by articles 4 and 48 of

the Employment and Industrial Relations Act, the Minister responsible

for European Affairs and Equality has made the following order

(1) The title of this order is the Annual Leave National

Standard Order, 2018.

(2) For the purposes of this order, "the Act" means the

Employment and Industrial Relations Act.

(3) The terms and expressions used in this order, unless the

context otherwise requires, shall have the same meaning assigned to

them in the Act.

(1) This order lays down the minimum requirements

related to the entitlement of annual leave in terms of the Organisation

of Working Time Regulations.

(2) This order shall be applicable without prejudice to the

introduction and implementation of provisions in collective

agreements or in any other agreement entered into between employers

and employees which are more favourable to employees.

(1) Leave with pay from the annual leave entitlement

shall be availed of on days agreed upon between the employer and

employee.

(2) As from the 1st of January 2019, unless otherwise agreed to

in any applicable collective agreement, the employer may only utilize

up to the equivalent in hours of twelve working days from the annual

leave entitlement, to be calculated as provided for in the Organisation

of Working Time Regulations, for the purposes of any type of

shutdown, including a temporary closure of whole or part of the

premises by the employer for bridge holidays or any other short

periods of shutdown.

(3) Any type of shutdown, including a temporary closure of

whole or part of the premises by the employer for bridge holidays,

shall be communicated to all the employees by the end of January of

each calendar year.

Once leave from the annual leave entitlement of the Cancellation of

employee has been agreed to by the employer and the employee, such leave.

leave cannot be cancelled unilaterally but can only be cancelled if both

the employer and the employee are in agreement.

(1) Annual leave shall continue to accrue in favour of an Accrual of leave

employee during the period when she is on maternity leave in terms of during

leave.

the Protection of Maternity (Employment) Regulations

Provided that notwithstanding anything to the contrary

stated in any law, order or regulation, any balance of annual leave

unavailed of by the end of the calendar year shall be automatically

transferred to the next calendar year when it has not been possible for

the employee to avail herself of such leave during the same year when

the maternity leave commenced.

(2) Subject to article 6(b) of the National Holidays and other Cap. 252.

Public Holidays Act, when a public or national holiday falling on a day

of work or on a weekly day of rest not being a Saturday or a Sunday

falls within a period of maternity leave of any employee in respect of

whom the Protection of Maternity (Employment) Regulations apply, S.L. 452. 91

such employee shall be entitled to the equivalent in hours of an

additional day of annual leave to be calculated on the basis provided

for in regulation 8 of the Organisation of Working Time Regulations. S.L.452.87.

Annual leave shall continue to accrue in favour of an Accrual of leave

employee during the period when he is on sick leave or injury leave in during

of sickness,

terms of the Act, orders or regulations issued thereunder

injury.

Provided that notwithstanding anything to the contrary

stated in any law, order or regulation, any balance of annual leave

unavailed of by the end of the calendar year shall be automatically

transferred to the next calendar year when it has not been possible for

the employee to avail himself of such leave during the same year when

the sickness or injury leave commenced.

The provisions laid down in articles 5 and 6 of this order Applicability of

articles 5 and 6.

shall apply

(a) irrespective of whether the annual leave entitlement is

the minimum provided by law or is of a longer duration by virtue

of a collective agreement or any other agreement entered into by

the employer and the employee concerned;

(b) in case of article 5, irrespective of the duration of the

maternity leave entitlement in terms of the Protection of S.L.452.91.

Maternity (Employment) Regulations; and

(c) in case of article 6 irrespective of whether the sick

leave or the injury leave is fully paid, partially paid or unpaid.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary stated in any law,

order or regulation, any period of pre-arranged leave coinciding with a

period of maternity, sickness or injury leave shall be considered as not

having been availed of but shall be availed of after the return to work

or shall be carried on to the subsequent year if such leave could not be

availed of during the same year when the maternity, sickness or injury

leave commenced.

Where the employment relationship is terminated for

whatever reason, all the balance of annual leave, including that annual

leave which had accrued during a period of maternity leave, a period

of sickness or during a period of injury but which had not been availed

of, must be paid in accordance with the Organisation of Working Time

Regulations.

Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with the

provisions of this order shall be guilty of an offence against the Act in

terms of article 45 of the Act and shall be liable to a minimum fine

(multa) of four hundred and sixty-five euro (€465). Moreover, in any

proceedings instituted on the basis of an alleged breach of this order,

besides the aforementioned penalty, the Court shall impose an

obligation on the employer to grant any annual leave not availed of and

accrued in any previous years in terms of this order. In the case of an

employee who is no longer in the employment of the employer, the

Court shall order the employer to pay a sum equal to the paid annual

leave not availed of and accrued in any previous years in terms of this

order.

The Weekly Day of Rest and Annual Vacation Leave

National Standard Order is hereby being repealed.

€0.27