The Holiday Problem

Everyone is legally entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year. You know this in theory. What you don't know, until it happens, is that your staff will want to take that holiday at exactly the times when you need them most.

Summer is your busiest season. Beer gardens are full, festivals are happening, your taproom is packed every weekend. It's also when everyone wants to go on holiday. You'll get three leave requests for the same fortnight in August, and you can only say yes to one of them. The other two will be annoyed.

Christmas and New Year is worse. Your taproom trade is at its peak. Your off-trade orders are huge. And half your team wants the week off because they've got family commitments. Someone has to work Christmas Eve. Someone has to work New Year's Day. And whoever draws the short straw will remember it.

You can't refuse all holiday requests during busy periods — that's unreasonable and potentially unlawful. But you can set a clear holiday policy from day one: blackout dates, maximum staff off at any one time, first-come-first-served booking. Get it in writing, put it in the contract, and enforce it consistently. The worst thing you can do is make exceptions for one person and not another, because everyone talks and everyone notices.

And remember — when staff are on holiday, you're paying them not to be there, and you still need the work done. In a small team, there's often nobody to cover. Which means you're covering. Which means the founder who thought they'd finally hired enough help is back to doing 80-hour weeks in August while their employee is on a beach somewhere. Entirely within their rights. Completely maddening.