Can you refuse leave from your employee? This is what you need to know as an employer

As an employer, you regularly face leave requests from your employees. Sometimes these come unexpectedly or without clear information, which can lead to questions or even conflicts. What are your rights and obligations as an employer? And how do you avoid misunderstandings? In this article, we explain the most important leave rules and provide practical tips.

Your duty to inform as an employer

Since the introduction of the EU Directive on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions Implementation Act, as an employer you are obliged to inform employees of their entitlement to vacation or other paid leave. This applies to all forms of leave granted with pay, such as parental leave or care leave. If a collective bargaining agreement applies, a reference to it may suffice. Does your company not have a collective bargaining agreement? Then it is advisable to be well aware of the legal leave rules and formulate its own leave policy. Below we highlight some common forms of leave and the conditions that employees and employers must adhere to.

Emergency leave

Emergency leave is for very urgent, unexpected personal situations, such as a burst water pipe or the sudden pick-up of a sick child. This leave usually lasts from a few hours to a few days at most and must be paid for by your employer.

Short-term care leave

When an employee must temporarily care for a sick partner, child or close family member, he or she can claim short-term care leave. This amounts to a maximum of twice the weekly working hours per year. So with full-time employment, this is 10 days per year. You may refuse this leave only if the absence has serious consequences for business operations and this interest outweighs that of the employee. The employer must be able to demonstrate that he cannot overcome this situation in any way. This is difficult to prove in practice. During this leave, the employee is entitled to at least 70% of salary.

Long-term care leave

This leave is designed for situations when an employee needs to care for a seriously ill loved one for an extended period of time, for example. The maximum duration is six times the weekly working hours per year and this leave is unpaid. Again, you may refuse the leave only if it would seriously affect business operations and outweigh the employee’s interests. Your decision must be communicated in writing no later than one week before the desired effective date. If you fail to do so, the leave will take effect automatically.

Birth leave and additional birth leave

The rules regarding maternity leave are clear to most employers. Since 2019, partners are also entitled to more birth leave equal to one time the weekly working hours, with full pay being paid by the employer. In addition, they can request additional birth leave of up to five weeks, receiving benefits of 70% of salary through the UWV.

Mourning leave: a new leave scheme in the making

Currently, in the event of the death of a loved one, an employee can only use the short-term care leave option. This is intended for the period between death and funeral. This often turns out to be insufficient. As a result, many employees feel compelled to take vacation days, call in sick or take unpaid leave in the subsequent period to cope with the loss. A bill was therefore introduced last year to provide paid leave for this period as well, entitling employees with minor children to at least one time the weekly working hours of leave when their partner or minor child dies. This leave can be taken flexibly within one year of the death. Although this bill has not yet been passed, as an employer you can already establish a policy for this.

Practical tips for employers

• Be prepared: Establish a clear leave policy, including for situations not covered by law, such as moving or marriage.
• Communicate clearly: Make sure employees know what they are entitled to and the procedure for requesting leave.
• Be consistent: Lay out the consequences if employees do not follow procedure. Apply the same rules to all employees to avoid arbitrariness.
• Anticipate leave requests: Encourage employees to submit leave requests in a timely manner so that you can properly coordinate staff schedules.

By having a well-thought-out leave policy, you avoid misunderstandings and ensure both the rights of your employees and the continuity of your business. Do you have questions about how best to arrange this within your company? Our lawyers are ready to advise you!  Please contact one of our  attorneys by email, phone or fill out the contact form for a free initial consultation.  We are happy to think along with you.