Expiring of Annual Leave

[the_newguy]

I'm an EP holder and my contract with my current company ends at the end of January (starting a new job in SG).

I still have around 10 days of annual leave left.
Just now HR told me that these days will automatically expire when my contract ends, no encashment is allowed... But after searching the net, most sources seem to say that a company *is* required to reimburse the remaining leave days.

So my question is, who's right?

PS: Neither my contract nor the company's "staff policy manual" mention anything regarding expiration of leave days...

[AngMoG]

Afaik, remaining leave needs to be either taken or encashed. Not sure where to find any legal sources for this. Maybe others can chime in.

However, you are on the losing end here, legally. You are most likely not covered under the Employment Act, so MoM won't help you in labor disputes. Your only recourse is suing your former employer in court (or at least threatening to do so), but at 10 days of salary, I doubt the effort is worth the cost. Even if you win, you'll have to pay at least 40% of your legal costs out of your own pocket. And even if you settle (in which case you pay 100% of your legal costs), your legal costs by then will likely have reached between 500 and 1000 SGD by then.

[sundaymorningstaple]

AMG is pretty well spot on. If you are earning beyond the protection of The Employment Act, you would have needed to pay closer attention to your contract. A large number of companies here do NOT carry Annual Leave forward so it's a use it or lose it scenario. Others will allow you to carry forward a maximum of one year's leave. If you are given 12 days annual leave per year, it is accrued during the year and not all allowed from the first of January. Therefore you would accrue a/l at the rate of 1 days per month. If you resigned at the end of March you would have accrued 3 days of annual leave only. Some employers will allow you to offset your notice by the amount of annual leave you have. There is two ways of doing this. One is they shorten your notice by the number of days OR you are required to take the remaining leave during your notice period. The first way, means you could theoretically go to work for the new employer the next day. The latter means you are still employed up till your notice period ends and you cannot go to work for the new employer until such time as the old employer cancels your EP.

It is up to the company's SOP regarding the encashment or loss of underutilized leave at the end of a contract. Frankly, this is wrong, but there is nothing other than a court of law available to go after this and the employers know this, so the cost of recovery, for a nominal sum becomes prohibitive and you end up just biting the bullet. Other companies, like mine, allow us pretty much unlimited (within reason) carryforward. Course the pay sucks, but there you go. Can't have it all ways, I guess. :-/

[the_newguy]

AMG is pretty well spot on. If you are earning beyond the protection of The Employment Act, you would have needed to pay closer attention to your contract. A large number of companies here do NOT carry Annual Leave forward so it's a use it or lose it scenario. Others will allow you to carry forward a maximum of one year's leave. If you are given 12 days annual leave per year, it is accrued during the year and not all allowed from the first of January.

Thanks for your answer. My company does allow carrying forward of leave days from the previous year that's why I've got so many days left...

[sundaymorningstaple]

AMG is pretty well spot on. If you are earning beyond the protection of The Employment Act, you would have needed to pay closer attention to your contract. A large number of companies here do NOT carry Annual Leave forward so it's a use it or lose it scenario. Others will allow you to carry forward a maximum of one year's leave. If you are given 12 days annual leave per year, it is accrued during the year and not all allowed from the first of January.

Thanks for your answer. My company does allow carrying forward of leave days from the previous year that's why I've got so many days left...

A little further clarification on the below.....

Some employers will allow you to offset your notice by the amount of annual leave you have. There is two ways of doing this. One is they shorten your notice by the number of days OR you are required to take the remaining leave during your notice period. The first way, means you could theoretically go to work for the new employer the next day. The latter means you are still employed up till your notice period ends and you cannot go to work for the new employer until such time as the old employer cancels your EP.

If you offset your notice but the number of days of annual leave remaining, you do not get paid for them. You, in effect are shortening your notice and giving the employer the annual leave in lieu of notice.

If you go on annual leave whilst serving your notice then you obviously will be paid for them but you will be still employed by them until the end of your contract.

[the_newguy]

If you offset your notice but the number of days of annual leave remaining, you do not get paid for them. You, in effect are shortening your notice and giving the employer the annual leave in lieu of notice.

If you go on annual leave whilst serving your notice then you obviously will be paid for them but you will be still employed by them until the end of your contract.

The thing is, I can't do (couldn't have done) either of the two. My boss didn't grant my leave in January as "there are too many things to finish before I go" and since my employment is a fixed-term contract (ending at the end of Jan) there's no notice period.

My contract only states that leave can be carried forward 1 calendar year, but doesn't specify what happens with remaining leave days...

[sundaymorningstaple]

Go on Sick Leave for the duration? Or go to court. Or kiss it goodbye.

[Sergei82]

If you have the contract, you have the leave. If it is 10 days before the contract end, you can go on leave right now, employer has no right taking away what's yours. At what point I am not right?

[AngMoG]

If you have the contract, you have the leave. If it is 10 days before the contract end, you can go on leave right now, employer has no right taking away what's yours. At what point I am not right?

Unfortunately not quite correct. Unapproved leave is essentially unexcused absence, i.e. unpaid leave. Plus, in most cases the employer will only pay the salary on/after the last day for people who need tax clearance. And until then, he can make any deductions he wants.

[PNGMK]

That's pretty shitty. If your employer was half was reputable they'd pay it out. I'd make a note on glassdoor and a few other employer review sites of their behaviour.