Holiday entitlement and the Working Time Directive

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What the Working Time Regulations say

The EU Working Time Directive is European legislation. The Working Time Regulations are the legislation which has incorporated the requirements of the EU directive into UK law. The holiday entitlement element of the regulations has become a confusing issue for many TV freelancers.

Since October 1998, the EU Working Time Directive has enshrined individual workers' rights to the following:

· a maximum average working week of 48 hours, including overtime;

· a maximum average of eight hours' night work in each 24-hour period;

· a minimum rest period of 11 consecutive hours per day;

· a minimum rest break of 20 minutes where the working day is longer than six hours;

· a minimum rest period of one day per week; and

· a minimum period of three weeks' annual paid leave, rising to four weeks in November 1999.

To qualify as a 'worker', and claim the entitlement, you have to be either in a permanent job, a PAYE freelance, or a Schedule D freelance providing your labour personally.

The need to provide four weeks' annual paid leave to workers required broadcasters and independent production companies to introduce new payment methods to meet the requirements of the law. Initially, the requirement to give paid leave only kicked in once a freelancer had worked thirteen consecutive weeks on a contract. However, in October 2001, BECTU took the UK government to the European Court, and won holiday rights for workers from day one on every contract. The entitlement therefore had to be respected on every freelance contract, no matter how short.

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