non-statutory leave
Although not legally obliged to do so, employers may wish as a matter of good practice to give employees time off work for reasons not covered by the employment legislation:
Time off to keep appointments.
If an appointment to visit the doctor, dentist, optician, hospital or clinic cannot be made outside working hours, employers may wish to consider allowing employees time off to attend them, as a matter of good practice.
Compassionate leave.
Under employment legislation, employees have a right to a reasonable amount of unpaid time off work to take action that is necessary as the result of the death of a dependant (what is covered? ). Employers may wish to consider whether to grant additional leave to cover a broader range of situations including, for example, the death of family members not covered by the statutory right to time off.
Extended leave.
Employers may be prepared to grant extended leave in some circumstances, such as where an employee wishes to undertake training or visit relatives in a distant country. In these cases, it is advisable to put the terms on which leave is granted in writing. If an employee does not attend for work at the end of a period of extended leave, he or she should be dealt with in the same way as any other employee who takes unauthorised absence. That could include, where appropriate, applying the disciplinary procedure.
Breaks from work.
If an employee wants to take a substantial period off work, it may be more appropriate for him or her to resign, although the company may be willing to offer the employee a job if one is available when he or she is ready to return to work. It would be highly advisable to confirm this type of arrangement in writing, to ensure that the company makes clear the extent of its commitment to offer re-employment. If the company does not want an employee to continue to build up his or her period of continuous employment ( Calculating qualifying periods ) during a break from work, it should confirm in writing that it does not view the employee as continuing in employment for any purpose during the break.
Employers who choose to give extra leave can do so on a discretionary basis or by giving employees additional rights in their contracts of employment. Even if leave is non-contractual and granted on a discretionary basis, it is advisable for those considering a request for leave to have some form of internal management guidelines on the issues that should be taken into account in deciding whether to grant leave. This will help to ensure a consistent and objective approach to requests, and avoid the danger of discrimination. The guidelines might also cover whether any conditions should be applied to leave that is granted. An employer may, for example, be more inclined to allow time off if the employee is prepared to make up the time at some future date.