You know how it is. After work, you quickly request your holiday while enjoying a drink. “Of course, no problem. A lovely two weeks in the sun, you should definitely do it.” Until a week later, it turns out your employer remembers nothing about it. It’s wise to prevent this. We give you five tips!
1. Request it in writing
Even if you have such a good relationship with your employer, verbal agreements are difficult to prove. Therefore, send the period and duration of your holiday in writing (for example, via e-e-mail or WhatsApp). According to the law, your employer must let you know within two weeks whether it is approved. Hear nothing? Then your holiday is approved according to your wishes. Of course, in practice, this sometimes works differently…
2. Send a reminder
Therefore, always first send a reminder of the request to your employer and wait with booking your holiday until you have officially discussed it together. Perhaps you really cannot be missed during that period? Or maybe your colleague is just on holiday then? Also, ask for a written confirmation of your request, so everything is in black and white.
3. Consult with your colleagues
Of course, you haven’t forgotten your colleagues! You’re probably not the only one who wants to go on holiday. In the most ideal situation, you are aware of each other’s holiday wishes and coordinate this together. Moreover, this saves a lot of discussion afterwards.
4. Submit your request well in advance
In practice, the principle ‘first come, first served’ often applies. The earlier you submit your request, the greater the chance it will be approved. Is your request still denied? Then first check if your employer has a valid reason. For example, seasonal pressure or indispensability due to illness or dismissal of your colleagues. Do you doubt the reason? Then contact us.
5. Vacation days expire
Statutory holiday days that you do not take expire six months after the end of the calendar year in which you accrued them. Vacation days that you accrue in a calendar year must be taken by 1 July of the following year at the latest. Non-statutory days only expire after 5 years.
Note: employers are obliged to fully and timely inform employees about the expiry/lapse of holiday days. This means your employer must warn you as soon as your holiday days are about to expire or lapse. If this does not happen, statutory holiday days do not expire on 1 July of the following year.