The BBC has failed
to take notice of new labour laws giving increased holiday rights to freelance
workers, according to
broadcast union Bectu.
The laws came into force on 25 October and state that all
workers are eligible for holiday pay from the moment they start with an
employer, regardless of contractual position.
Previously, the qualifying
period for holiday rights had been 13 weeks of employment, ruling out many
freelancers who typically have engagements lasting only a few days or weeks.
Bectu claims that the BBC has tried to
ignore the holiday payments and created internal guidelines that do not
recognise freelancers
with multiple employers as eligible for holiday pay.
With 60 per cent of the
broadcast industry currently freelance, the union believes that this will lead
to an upsurge in applications to employment tribunals.
A top-level meeting between
senior officials from Bectu
and the BBC, together with their legal advisers, is now being arranged.
