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Talent ID

Find your Balance


Christmas in the Workplace


And equally dubious glances between workmates who got a little, shall we say, ‘friendlier’ than they intended after a few too many eggnogs.



1. Managing staff levels and expectations




• Remind people to put their leave requests in early
• Make the most of technology to record and manage leave requests
• Be respectful and explain the ‘why’ when you have to turn someone down

2. Shutting up shop

If you are planning an ‘annual closedown’ period at Christmas, you must legally give your employees at least 14 days’ notice.


Those in their first year of employment with you, who don’t yet have any leave, must be paid 8% of the gross pay they’ve earned since they started working for you.


Any public holidays during the closedown period, are paid.

3. Holiday pay


Under the Act, you should pay employees leave at either their ordinary rate, or their average weekly earnings over the previous 12 months - whichever is the highest of the two.

But if you have employees who don’t have an ‘ordinary rate’, such as shift workers, you should use the average of the past four weeks, or the average of the past 12 months - again, whichever is the highest of the two.

Sounds simple enough right? Not exactly. The intricacies of the law can, and do catch people out. If you’re not sure if you’re doing things correctly, seek advice - to avoid hefty fines and costly backdated holiday payments.

4. Overtime

These are agreed between both parties, with the hourly ‘overtime’ rate usually being higher than that paid during a ‘normal’ 40-hour week.
While time and a half and double time are often agreed, there’s no legal obligation for employers to pay extra per hour.


Electrocution by fairy lights, getting sexually harassed by a reindeer (well, Neville from ‘accounts’ wearing reindeer antlers), anaphylaxis from the seafood pate… the office Christmas party is a potential health and safety minefield.

But is it really?

By law an employer can be prosecuted if they fail to protect their staff. However there is also an element of employee responsibility - and liability lies somewhere in the middle.


As a responsible employer you should also consider things like providing food and non-alcoholic drink options, not serving people who are drunk and transport options.



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