Neal, Freightliner and holiday pay…are we any closer to clarity?

Readers will recall that the Tribunal concluded in this case that a worker’s holiday pay ought to include overtime and premium payments when calculating the amount of basic remuneration. The Tribunal further suggested that any element of pay linked to the tasks required of the worker under the contract of employment, for which payment is received, should be included. The decision, one of the most significant in employment law for some time, suggests that employers may need to assess their holiday pay calculations, but with little further guidance or clarification from the Tribunal on how to achieve this, or what payments should correctly be included.

The decision of the Tribunal in Neal is not binding and the case was appealed to the EAT, the hearing taking place in Summer 2014. It was hoped that the much anticipated judgment would confirm the decision of the Tribunal and provide much needed clarity on the issues raised, including how to properly calculate holiday pay. This case has, disappointingly, has settled out of court.

The good news? The appeal hearing did go ahead in July 2014 in respect of the other cases that Neal had been joined with. When Anthony Collins Solicitors spoke with the Employment Appeal Tribunal, we were informed to expect a decision in October 2014. Therefore, watch this space for further updates in what now has the catchy case name of “Bear Scotland Ltd v Fulton and Baxter, Hertel (UK) Ltd v Wood and others and Amec Group Limited v Law and others”.

Previous issues of our briefings on the issue of holiday pay can be found by clicking the links below:

Calculating holiday pay – don’t fall into the trap

Calculating Holiday Pay – Update

If you would like to discuss your arrangements or related issues, please contact Kate Watkins on 0121 212 7494 or kate.watkins@anthonycollins.com.

• Share this