By law all workers have, in addition to their daily rest, a recognized annual rest that must be paid on the payroll and that cannot be compensated financially. This right to leave cannot be waived.
The holiday time is proportional to the time worked, and except when the collective agreement provides otherwise, it is 30 days for each year worked. Unless the collective agreement establishes a period longer than that established by law.
To improve the organization, the company can make available to workers a holiday calendar,which allows to combine the right of all workers and the organization of work by the company. This holiday calendar is not required by the company.
All workers have the right to request leave through a document of a holiday application. To write this document you can search for a model vacation request on the Internet and choose one of all available or you can write one simply following established guidelines.
must be delivered by hand,with a copy to be signed by the employer and recorded that it has been received; or sent by burofax or registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt.
Likewise, the company must reply to the worker confirming the requested holiday period.
Holiday request form
A vacation request letter should have a number of essential elements:
- The place and date where the letter is written.
- The number of holiday periods that the worker wishes to enjoy (the entire period together or divided into fortnights or weeks).
- The number of vacation days requested in each period.
- The start and end date of each period
- The name of the worker and the signature of the worker.
Holiday letter for the company: How to draft the holiday application
This holiday request letter can be sent whether the company has made a holiday calendar or not.
First of all it is a formal letter,which must be made in duplicate if the worker is going to deliver it by hand to the company, so that the company can seal or sign as received the copy. It will not be necessary to write the letter in duplicate if it is sent by burofax or by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt.
All the data of the worker and the company must be included. The day of start of the holiday and the day of incorporation into work, if the holidays are enjoyed in several periods, for example weekly, the beginning and end of each of these periods must be recorded.
At the end of the letter, the name, identity document and signature of the worker requesting them must appear.
Can the worker change the holidays already agreed with the company?
The worker must know the period of his vacation two months in advance.
Since the holiday calendar is announced, the worker has 20 days to claim or modify the holiday period(s).
If those 20 working days have already passed, the worker cannot modify his vacation period.
The only possibility that exists that the period of enjoyment of vacations can be changed, is that the worker is on leave at the time of enjoying the annual rest.
If that is the case, then the worker may by law enjoy the holidays in a period different from that initially requested.
Can holiday dates be imposed?
Holidays must be allocated as dictated by the collective agreement applicable to the worker’s sector and the company. If this agreement does not establish a holiday period, the dates shall be established by mutual agreement between the parties.
That is, the company cannot impose the vacation dates if the agreement does not establish whento take them, and less if it does not communicate to the worker two months before the date of the same.
A false legend circulates in which it is believed that the company can choose half of the holiday period and the worker the other half, this is totally false and contrary to what the law establishes.
The company can deny the holiday request period
Only if the company justifies reasons for service needs, or because it coincides with other workers of the same position, level or hierarchy,the company can deny vacation in the period requested by the worker in the vacation letter.
These causes must be duly justified. Always trying to negotiate a new holiday period by common agreement between the worker and the company and, of course, always at least two months before the enjoyment of the holidays.
If the worker does not agree, he can sue the company and wait for the court decision.
