Annual leave survey 2013: managing sick leave

Interpretations of the Working Time Directive within the European Court of Justice have left the relationship between paid holiday entitlement and sickness absence very unclear. We asked employers how they are managing their approach to employees who become ill or injured before or during scheduled annual leave in the face of some contradictory legal positions, and find that almost all have a clear, laid-down policy in place.

Sickness absence and scheduled annual leave

While there is currently no legislation governing the relationship between paid holiday entitlement and sickness absence, certain European Court of Justice (ECJ) decisions have muddied the domestic law waters when it comes to paid annual leave and sickness absence. It is unclear what an employer's position should be when it comes to employees falling ill either before or during planned annual leave.