Am I entitled to Bank Holidays and public holidays in addition to the minimum holiday entitlement under the Working Time Regulations?

Employers may include bank holidays and public holidays in the minimum entitlement, currently 4.8 weeks and due to rise to 5.6 weeks on April 1 2009.

However, many employers add statutory holidays to the minimum. You should consult your contract of employment to establish the exact position.

The government has closed the loophole that allowed mean employers to count bank holidays against the four weeks minimum provided by Europe. But it has done this by increasing the minimum entitlement (in two stages) rather than by providing a new right to take bank holidays off work.

There is no right to take bank holidays off work, unless it is promised in your contract of employment.