Holiday Entitlements
Getting holiday entitlements right is a legal obligation, and getting them wrong can result in costly tribunal claims. StaffBrik handles the calculations automatically - including pro-rata adjustments for part-time workers and mid-year starters - so you can be confident your team is getting what they are owed.
UK Statutory Holiday Entitlement
Under UK law, all workers are entitled to a minimum of 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year. For a full-time employee working 5 days a week, this equates to 28 days (including bank holidays).
The 28-day figure includes bank holidays. There is no separate statutory right to bank holidays on top of the 5.6-week entitlement - though many employers choose to offer them in addition. StaffBrik lets you configure whether bank holidays are included in or added to the base entitlement.
Pro-Rata Calculation
Part-Time Workers
Part-time employees receive holiday entitlement proportionate to their hours. StaffBrik calculates this automatically.
Example: A cafe assistant works 3 days a week.
- Full-time entitlement: 28 days
- Pro-rata: 28 x (3 ÷ 5) = 16.8 days
For employees with variable hours (common in hospitality), entitlement is calculated as 12.07% of hours worked. StaffBrik tracks this accrual in real time.
Mid-Year Starters
Employees who join partway through your holiday year receive a proportionate entitlement for the remainder of the year.
Example: Your holiday year runs January to December. A new waitress starts on 1st April.
- Remaining months: 9 out of 12
- Full-time entitlement: 28 days
- Pro-rata: 28 x (9 ÷ 12) = 21 days for the remainder of the year
StaffBrik calculates this automatically based on the employee's start date and your configured holiday year.
For seasonal staff or those on short contracts, the 12.07% accrual method is often simpler and fairer. StaffBrik supports both the fixed-entitlement and accrual-based approaches.
Holiday Year Configuration
Your holiday year does not have to follow the calendar year. Many hospitality businesses align it with their financial year or a quieter trading period.
You can configure the holiday year start date in StaffBrik Settings:
- Start month and start day (e.g. 1st April, 6th April, 1st September).
- Entitlement in days for a full-time employee (default: 28).
- Hours per day used for converting between days and hours (e.g. 8 hours).
Changing your holiday year mid-cycle requires careful handling of any accrued entitlement. If you need to change it, do so at the start of a new year and ensure no employee loses out on days already earned.
Used vs Remaining Days
StaffBrik tracks holiday usage in real time. For each employee, you can see:
- Total entitlement - their full annual allowance (pro-rated if applicable).
- Used - days/hours already taken.
- Pending - days/hours in approved-but-not-yet-taken requests.
- Remaining - what is left for the rest of the year.
This information is visible on:
- The employee's profile page.
- The Time Off section when reviewing requests (so you can see at a glance whether someone has enough days left).
- The Time Off Report.
Carryover
UK law does not require employers to allow holiday carryover, but many do - and in some circumstances (e.g. long-term sickness preventing an employee from taking holiday), you may be legally required to permit it.
StaffBrik supports configurable carryover:
- Maximum carryover days - set a cap on how many unused days can roll into the next year (e.g. 5 days).
- Carryover expiry - optionally set a deadline by which carried-over days must be used (e.g. within 3 months of the new holiday year).
Carried-over days appear separately in the entitlement breakdown so you can distinguish between current-year and rolled-over entitlement.
Under the Working Time Regulations, the first 4 weeks of entitlement (20 days for full-time) have stronger carryover protections than the additional 1.6 weeks (8 days). If an employee is unable to take holiday due to sickness or maternity leave, those 20 days must be allowed to carry over regardless of your normal policy.
Accrual Calculations
For employees on variable-hours contracts - common with casual or zero-hours restaurant staff - StaffBrik calculates holiday accrual at 12.07% of hours worked.
Where does 12.07% come from?
- 5.6 weeks of holiday ÷ 46.4 working weeks (52 weeks minus 5.6 weeks) = 12.07%.
Example: A casual kitchen assistant has worked 200 hours so far this holiday year.
- Accrued holiday: 200 x 12.07% = 24.14 hours
StaffBrik updates accrual figures automatically as shift data is recorded. You can view current accrual on the employee's profile and in the Time Off Report.
The accrual method is the fairest approach for variable-hours staff because their entitlement grows in direct proportion to the hours they actually work. It also protects you from overpaying holiday to someone who works fewer hours than expected.