How much vacation am I entitled to?

instagram viewer

Many workers are unsure how much vacation they are entitled to. The answer to the question of how much vacation you are entitled to is not an easy one, because it depends on various factors.

One would like to have a long vacation here.
One would like to have a long vacation here. © Petra_Schmidt___pixelio / Pixelio

Basic information on the right to vacation

The answer to the question "How much vacation is my right? "depends on the following facts:

  • In general, every employee has the right to vacation; this is regulated in the Federal Holiday Act. So even if no vacation arrangements have been made, you have a statutory right to the minimum vacation.
  • In many industries there are Collective agreementsin which vacation is regulated. If there is a collective agreement for your employment relationship, you may be entitled to more vacation than the minimum vacation.
  • Since employment contracts can be negotiated freely, there is also the possibility that im employment contract something else has been agreed about the vacation. But the contracts must comply with the Federal Holiday Act, if there is a collective agreement, also within this framework.
  • So it can only be agreed that you are entitled to more vacation than the statutory minimum vacation or that resulting from the collective agreement.
    • Recreational leave according to the TVöD - information

    Those who work should also go on vacation so that they can relax from work. As …

How much recovery time you have

  • Take a look at that Federal Leave Act (BUrlG) there it is regulated in § 3 that everyone is entitled to at least 24 working days vacation per year.
  • There you can also find out what working days are for the purposes of this law. Working days are all days that are not a Sunday or a public holiday. According to the Federal Holiday Act, Saturday is a working day.
  • If you have not worked for the employer for a year, then also take a look at Section 4 of the law, because logically you cannot start an employment relationship with a vacation. You must have worked six months before you are entitled to vacation.
  • You are of course entitled to vacation even if you have not been employed by the employer for six months. In this case, you are entitled to 1/12 of the statutory minimum vacation per month, as you can easily read in Section 5 of the law.

Important information about vacation planning

  • Even if you have a regular working time from Monday to Friday, you use six days of the statutory minimum vacation per vacation week, because Saturday is a working day according to the law. However, there are often deviations from this in collective agreements or employment contracts. So you have to clarify this on a case-by-case basis. To be on the safe side, however, assume the less favorable rule that one week means 6 days of vacation.
  • Even if you need half a vacation day, you should be careful, because according to the BUrlG, partial vacation days are rounded up. So if you take half a day off it can cost you a full day of vacation. You should also clarify this with the boss on a case-by-case basis. He can always accommodate you, you are not entitled to it.

The question "How much vacation am I entitled to?" Cannot be answered in general, but you can generally assume at least 24 working days.

How helpful do you find this article?

click fraud protection