The Friday before the August bank holiday is the most popular day of the year for employees to request annual leave, with many of us using the bank holiday to maximise summer holidays.
Employees intend to return to work refreshed and raring to go, however as airports around the UK face crisis due to an Air Traffic Control technical fault, some may not feel so refreshed after huge delays.
Repercussions are expected to last for days, which poses an issue for employers that are expecting staff to return. As employees face unprecedented circumstances, what should an employer do?
Kate Palmer, HR Advice and Consultancy Director at Peninsula says: “Employees who miss their first day back at work due to flight delays have a responsibility to get in touch with their employer to let them know they won’t be back in work as planned.
“Normal absence notification procedures should be followed, although it may be helpful if employees speak with their employer as soon as they know that they will not be back in time for work to give as much notice as possible for alternative arrangements to be made.
“These days, almost everyone has a mobile phone, so there shouldn’t really be any employee who does not have the means to quickly get in touch with their employer. If the employee does not get in touch, it would initially go down as unauthorised absence – until they confirm to you why they were not in.
“Where normal absence notification procedures have not been followed, find out why. It may be that the timings of their delayed flight meant they were unable to get in touch when they should have, so keep an open mind here.
“It is likely that the employee’s absence will last only one or two days, but you should try to come to an agreement over how to categorise the absence; for example, you could agree that more annual leave is taken, or the employee could use up some time banked in lieu.
“In both cases, pay will not be affected. If no other arrangement can be made, unpaid leave is likely to be the most appropriate option. However, although the employee is not in control of their circumstances, there is no legal obligation to pay employees who are absent for this reason unless their contract contains a provision to the contrary.”
