Two Recent Cases Of Interest

We report below on two recent cases that highlight issues of interest to employers; the first UK judgment in light of the ECJ's decision in Pereda and an EAT decision on changes to terms and conditions of employment.

Tribunal decides sick worker can carry over 'lost' holiday

In the first UK judgment following the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Pereda v Madrid Movilidad, an employment tribunal has held that the Working Time Regulations can be interpreted to give effect to the decision in Pereda. As a result, a worker who is prevented from taking annual leave due to a period of incapacity and returns to work with insufficient time to take that leave within the relevant leave year must be allowed to take the leave in the following leave year. In reaching this conclusion, the tribunal also recalled the Stringer case, in which the ECJ and House of Lords ruled that holiday continues to accrue during sick leave.