Surrendering vacation days? Discover your rights!

Questioner

It turns out that at my work the wrong formula has been applied for the past 10 years to calculate vacation days for part-timers. Now all part-timers have received too many vacation days (hours). The excess vacation days (hours) received from the last 5 years are now being reclaimed. These are being offset against the vacation days (hours) of 2015. As a result, a large number of employees are disadvantaged and some even receive a negative balance for 2015. Can this just happen? What actions can I (we) take? Kind regards.

Lawyer

The law states that every employee is entitled to 4 x the number of hours worked per week as vacation. The excess vacation days granted may not be offset in any case to the extent that they form part of the statutory minimum of vacation days. Therefore, no negative balance can arise for 2015 because the balance must be at least the statutory minimum. For any previously enjoyed, excessively received, extra-statutory vacation days, the assessment must be made as to whether the wrongful awarding of too many vacation days should remain at the expense of the employer or should also be partly at the expense of the employee. In this assessment, the answer to the question plays a role whether the employee should or could have known that he received too many vacation days, and whether he was obliged to report this. A written provision regarding settlement can provide clarity in this matter.

Questioner

Can all of this be reclaimed in 5 years or is there a maximum term attached to this?

Questioner

How can you prove that you didn't know you had too many days? Can all this be claimed back in 5 years or is there a maximum term?

Lawyer

Term is 5 years. The employer did not discover it earlier, so the chance that you as an employee could have discovered it is small. I therefore advise you to indicate that the incorrect calculation is at the employer's expense and risk and that it therefore cannot be reclaimed.

Questioner

Thank you for your answer! I hope my employer sees it this way too.