How do I claim holidays?

How do I request holidays as an Umbrella Employee?

As an employee of Umbrella Contracts you are entitled to annual holidays just like any other employee in the UK. Taking holidays while contracting via an umbrella company is a relatively simple process, but if you’re new to this way of working sometimes it can be unclear where to start – we figured we’d help you out.

Annual Holiday Reminders

Firstly, don’t be surprised if you hear from us a couple of times each year to remind you that you have holidays to take – it’s our legal obligation to do so and we don’t want you to miss out on days that you are owed. Your annual allowance is 28 working days between April 1st and March 31st the following year (bank holidays should be included in this 28 day allowance).

Who do you need to tell and get approval of dates from?

Well, as you know, your role is not a simple employee to employer set-up, there are other parties within the chain who need to be consulted should you wish to book time-off.

Firstly, chat with your line manager at your end client (the place you undertake your work for), it’s likely that any restrictions in the time that you request off will be at their end. Fingers-crossed all is approved for you, but your end-client may have specific holiday allocation procedures that they ask that you follow, and they may need to consider assignment deadlines or conflicting holiday requests from other integral contractors/employees before honoring your request.

If your end-client does approve your requested dates then informing your recruitment agency would be the next step. It’s highly unlikely that your agency will dispute any dates that you’ve requested, but informing them will mean that they can record your time off in their systems accordingly.

Lastly… let us know! We are your employer, so informing us that you’re taking time off will allow us to maintain accurate records for you. We will have very little reason to ever question your requested time off, your absence from our services for a week or two does not affect your contract or employment with us and certainly does not impact the way we’re able to operate as your employer.

The great news is that Umbrella Contracts we do not charge our weekly fee for any weeks you do not bill through us so while you are on holiday, you do not need to worry about your umbrella fee’s.

What about holiday pay?

Again, we’ve got you covered. As our employee you are entitled to holiday pay, at Umbrella Contracts, we pay it to you in advance – each pay slip that you receive will show a line item reflecting your holiday pay for that period. It’s your choice whether you spend that as regular income or you keep it to one side for spending money during your actual holidays.

For more details about how your holiday pay works, you can read our Holiday Pay Policy located here.

If you’re still unsure, please do not hesitate to contact us, we are happy to help.