What is the situation regarding bank holidays and shift workers over the weekend? An employee works a 4 day shift, beginning with what we call a Sunday nightshift from 00.00 am to 6.00 am, but as a calendar day this is an early Monday morning. On bank holiday Mondays the employee says he should be given the time off from 00.00 to 6.00 am on Monday morning, irrespective of the fact that we view this as a Sunday nightshift. Our view is that it is a Bank Holiday Monday and he should take the time on his Monday nightshift, not his Sunday nightshift. Other employees who work nightshifts on Mondays take their bank holidays on the Monday nightshift but the employee argues that as those employees don’t work the Sunday nightshift, they get their bank holiday anyway and that what we are really giving those employees is a day in lieu. He says he should not have to work the bank holiday just because we consider it to be a Sunday.

Who is correct?

Lucy Powell