Skip to main content

News story

December 20, 2019

Holidays over the Christmas period

Employers must be wary not to impose excessive sanctions in response to employees taking unauthorised holiday over the Christmas period.

Employment Tribunal Case History

In the case of Mrs J Stott v Next Retail Ltd, Mrs Stott was dismissed for not attending work on Christmas Eve, even though she was not contracted to work on that day.

Next had placed posters in its stores confirming that, due to the needs of the business, all staff were to work on Christmas Eve whether they were contracted to or not, as the company would need their staff to prepare for that year’s Boxing Day sales.

Mrs Stott told her bosses that she could not work on Christmas Eve due to prior arrangements. It was not made clear to her then that her refusal to work could result in her dismissal.

Mrs Stott returned to work on 26 and 27 December, when she was asked to attend a disciplinary hearing, resulting in her dismissal.

The Employment Tribunal considered the facts of the case, noting that Mrs Stott had worked for Next for several years and that, historically, she had only ever worked over the Christmas period when contracted to do so.

The Employment Tribunal concluded that when Mrs Stott advised her employers that she could not work on Christmas Eve, she was not given the appropriate warning that she could be dismissed if she did not attend work on that day.

Whilst Mrs Stott was awarded damages for unfair dismissal, these were assessed at 70% as the Employment Tribunal felt that Mrs Stott was, to some extent, responsible for her dismissal.

The long and the short of it

Employers should be warned that where an employee has accrued untaken leave and gives reasonable notice to take that leave, the employer must have valid business reasons for refusing the employee’s request for leave.

At this time of year, employers need to be mindful of implementing hours of work that may be deemed unfair, no matter how big or small they are. Next is a retail giant, and their need for staff to prepare for the Boxing Day sales was not seen as a legitimate business interest for refusing leave over the Christmas period.

For all your employment enquiries and concerns, contact Karen Cole today.

Note: This is not legal advice; it provides information of general interest about current legal issues.

Stay in touch

Subscribe to our newsletter

Stay in touch

By completing your details and submitting this form you confirm you are happy for us to send you marketing communications and that you agree to our Website Privacy Policy and Legal Notice and to us using Mailchimp to process your data.


Sending

News/Insight

  • Strategic lifetime gifting
    How to minimise your IHT liability during your lifetime.


    Read more
  • Navigating directors’ duties
    Legal responsibilities and risks for UK company directors


    Read more
  • Preparing a business-lasting power of attorney
    In this article, private client solicitor Herman Cheung of West End law firm RIAA Barker Gillette (UK) considers the advantages, needs and practical examples of creating a bu


    Read more
  • Can you make a WhatsApp will?
    Key legal requirements and future outlook.


    Read more
  • Supporting neurodiverse people in family law matters
    Understanding neurodiversity in the legal context.


    Read more

What they say...

  • Michael, May 2025
    “Very pleased with the services provided by Charlotte Barbaroussis. Particularly found her quick and effective to reply to any queries.”

  • Malcolm & Sheila Blackmore, May 2025
    “My wife and I engaged RIAA Barker Gillette to prepare our wills and LPOA’s. James McMullan and Charlotte Barbaroussis were the epitome of professionalism – responding quickly, talking us through the legalese, clearly answering any

  • Ian, April 2025
    “Martin and his team at Barker Gillette acted for us in our purchase and sale of property. The chain was lengthy and elements of the work became complex. Martin was tenacious and resolved to answer our queries as they arose. He handled all aspe

  • Henry, April 2025
    “We have purchased flats before with 2 different solicitors who were unable to help us this time. Martin came highly recommended and are we glad. He was very professional in every way: knowledgeable, approachable, he has a friendly manner, very

  • Megan Purcell-Jones, April 2025
    “Charlotte was extremely diligent and thorough. She talked us through the process of making our wills and listened to and understood our needs and the complexities involved. Extremely patient and very clear.”

Read more
Send this to a friend