This is what you should know about vacation entitlement
Vacation entitlement is governed by the German Federal Leave Act (Bundesurlaubsgesetz). It prescribes a minimum amount of vacation. Employers are free to grant additional vacation days or special leave.
Who is entitled to statutory vacation?
By law, every employee is entitled to vacation. That includes manual workers, salaried staff, apprentices and people in employee-like positions. Not only full-time staff, but also part-time staff, mini-jobbers, young people and seasonal workers are entitled to paid vacation. For young people there are further special rules on top of that, which you can read up on here.
How much vacation entitlement do employees have?
The German Federal Leave Act sets a minimum of 24 days of vacation per year on a six-day week. On a five-day week it is 20 days per year. The entitlement to the full amount of vacation exists as soon as an employee has worked at the company for at least six months. Within the first six months an employee is only entitled to partial vacation. Within the first six months employees are entitled to one twelfth of the vacation entitlement for each month worked.
The vacation entitlement itself, especially in part-time jobs, depends on how the working hours are spread out. If the employer grants more than the statutory vacation, part-time staff are entitled to the additional vacation days as well.
Vacation entitlement does not depend on the hours worked per week or per month, but on the working days:
If a part-time employee works five days a week just as the full-time staff do, only with a reduced number of hours, they are entitled to the same vacation. Because despite the reduced hours of part-time work per day, these employees also need the full five days in order to be able to take a week off.
Things look different if the number of working days drops along with the number of hours:
If a part-time employee works only three days a week instead of five, unlike the full-time staff, they are entitled to a smaller number of vacation days.
How is vacation entitlement calculated?
The following formula is generally used to calculate vacation entitlement:
(vacation entitlement x working days of the part-time employee per week) / usual working days per week in full-time)
To illustrate: a full-time employee receives 30 days of paid vacation. The part-time employee works 4 days per week, and the company has a five-day week. That gives the following calculation: (30 x 4) / 5 = 24 vacation days for the part-time employee.
We have worked out for you how much vacation entitlement there is in each case, depending on the working days per week:
| Working days per week | Statutory vacation entitlement | Number of vacation days per year | Number of vacation days per month worked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 working days | 4 weeks | = 24 statutory vacation days | 2 |
| 5 working days | 4 weeks | = 20 statutory vacation days | 1.7 |
| 4 working days | 4 weeks | = 16 statutory vacation days | 1.3 |
| 3 working days | 4 weeks | = 12 statutory vacation days | 1 |
| 2 working days | 4 weeks | = 8 statutory vacation days | 0.7 |
| 1 working days | 4 weeks | = 4 statutory vacation days | 0.3 |
How does vacation have to be planned and approved?
When it comes to approving and planning vacation, both employers and employees have a few things to keep in mind. It comes down to submitting the request, having a say, approval and restrictions on vacation.
Submitting a vacation request – what you have to keep in mind
Legally, the vacation request has to be submitted at least 14 days before the planned start date. This deadline can vary from company to company, however.
There is no legal requirement as to how the request has to be submitted. In large companies vacation requests are often submitted in writing. The law does not forbid verbal requests, though. Companies often lose track this way, however. For employees and employers alike it therefore makes sense to document the vacation and its confirmation in writing.
Manage vacation requests digitally
With the clockin app, employees can now submit their vacation requests digitally and in comfort from the sofa. With a few clicks the request lands on the boss’s desk and can be dealt with in seconds.
Manage absences with clockin nowThese are the obligations when approving a request
As soon as the request has been submitted, whether in writing or verbally, the employer is obliged to answer promptly. This answer can also include a note that the request will be processed within a certain time frame (for example a week). As a rule, however, an answer to the vacation request should come within 10 days. A missing reply does not automatically count as approval.
Employees’ vacation wishes have to be taken into account!
When planning the company’s vacation, employers always have to take their employees’ vacation wishes into account. Even so, it can happen that a vacation request has to be refused, particularly during the school holidays, when employees with school-age children are given priority.
Employees have a say in company-wide vacation shutdowns, too, by the way. Here you can read more about the legal guidelines for company-wide vacation shutdowns.
Don’t forget the vacation provision!
Employers and employees should both keep the topic of vacation provisions and remaining vacation in mind as well. In practice, a vacation provision means carrying employees’ remaining vacation over into the following year, so that a provision can be made and the current year can be accounted for correctly.
Read more about vacation provisions here..avif)
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