The coronation of King Charles III will take place this Saturday (6 May), with an extra national bank holiday granted to employees on Monday 8 May.
But while millions will gather to watch the royal spectacle this weekend on TV or at public events, many will also be required to work.
Paul Nowak, general secretary of the TUC, has asked people to “spare a thought” for those who have to carry on working through the weekend, adding that “their labour will allow others to make the most of the celebration”.
“The fact that so many people work during events like this should pause us to think. We need a national conversation about public holidays in the UK. Everybody should get the chance to enjoy them,” he said.
According to industry body UK Hospitality, there will be a £350 million spending boost in pubs, hotels and restaurants this weekend as they benefit from longer opening times and visitors flock to the UK. This means workers in hospitality could be working longer hours than usual.
Coronation time off
Extra employees in police and the armed forces in London will also be drafted in to ensure security around the coronation celebration is tight.
The government confirmed there would be an extra bank holiday due to the coronation in November last year, but there is no automatic right to take the day off work for employees.
Kate Palmer, HR advice and consultancy director at law firm Peninsula, said: “The coronation bank holiday should be treated in exactly the same way as any other bank holiday.
“But still, a lot of people fall into the trap of thinking that bank holidays give them an automatic right to a paid day off. In reality, whether an employee does or doesn’t get this day off all comes down to what’s in the contract of employment.”
Palmer explained that if a contract specifically states the particular bank holidays someone is entitled to, or a certain number of bank holidays, it’s likely they’re not automatically entitled to take the coronation holiday off.
However, if the contract says “all bank holidays”, they will be able to take the day off.
“Even if contracts don’t entitle employees to take the day off, many employers are still choosing to give it as a paid day off,” she added.
“Not only does this allow employees to share the historic moment with friends and family, it is also a great way for employers to show appreciation for employees’ hard work and boost morale.”
Businesses that would normally be open can choose to close and enforce annual leave, but they ought to have given employees prior notice of this, she added, usually a minimum of two days.
Conciliation service Acas has also issued guidance around granting time off during the coronation celebrations.
Acas adviser Gary Wedderburn said: “Staff may want to take some time off for the coronation bank holiday, but it may be a busy time for a lot of businesses. Bosses should have discussions with their workers on their plans for this period.
“These discussions could include whether their businesses will remain open, if their employee’s contract allows them paid time off and how to take leave if they will not be closing.”
The coronation time off could present a further challenge for employers in that schools are closed, meaning parents who need to work on Monday 8 May could struggle with childcare.
“If these arrangements fall through at the last minute, they will be able to exercise their statutory right to take time off for dependants,” Palmer added. “Of course, they can also request annual leave as per the usual procedures but if the request is rejected, temporary working from home could be approved where possible.”
According to research from CV-Library, the triple bank holiday period falling in May means that more than three-quarters (76.4%) of UK workers will not be taking any additional leave this month.
The job board found that 35.1% were happy with having three Mondays off and wanted to save any remaining annual leave. For those who did want to maximise their leave by taking additional days around the bank holidays, almost half (48.7%) said this was so they could spend time with family and friends, and a fifth said they wanted to be a part of the coronation celebrations.
Lee Biggins, founder and CEO said: “These results may come as a surprise but during challenging economic times, finding balance becomes paramount.
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“It’s not surprising that so many people are keen to spread their breaks across the year, both to safeguard their livelihood and to protect their mental health and avoid burnout.”
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