Am I entitled to paid holiday?

Most workers are entitled to four weeks paid holiday a year by law. There are some workers who are not automatically entitled to this leave (for example, members of the armed forces or police force) and these workers have to rely on their contracts of employment for their rights to holiday.

Unless you're in one of these special categories of worker, you are entitled to four weeks paid holiday each leave year. Your employer will decide when the leave year starts and finishes - it may run from 6 April one year to 5 April the next, or it may run from 1 January to 31 December. You are entitled to paid holiday leave from the day you start work - you do not have to have worked for any minimum time to qualify.

A week's leave will be based on your normal working week, so if you usually work three days a week, you will be entitled to twelve days paid leave a year. If you work five days a week, you will be entitled to twenty days paid leave a year. A week of holiday pay should be paid at the same rate as your normal week's pay.

There is useful information about paid holiday in the Guidance document on the Department of Trade and Industry website at www.dti.gov.uk/er/work_time_regs.

Am I entitled to have the Bank holiday off work?

Most workers are entitled to four weeks' paid holiday. However, there is no automatic right to have any bank or public holidays off or to be paid for them. Any rights that you have to time off for bank or public holidays, will depend on what it says in your contract of employment.

If you are given bank or public holidays off, they can count as part of your four weeks holiday, unless your contact of employment specifically says that you get these holidays in addition to your four weeks holiday.

There is useful information about paid holiday in the Guidance document on the Department of Trade and Industry website at www.dti.gov.uk/er/work_time_regs.

My partner is due to have a baby very soon. Am I entitled to any time off work? Will I get paid?

If you have worked for your employer for at least 26 weeks you may be able to take up to two weeks' paid paternity leave. You may also have the right to 13 weeks' unpaid parental leave if you have worked for your employer for over one year. Parental leave has to be taken before your child is five years old. Both parents are entitled to this leave - mothers and fathers.

If your partner returns to work she will have access to the same rights to parental leave in addition to whatever maternity leave she may be due.

Some employers do give paid leave for the birth of a new child so you should check your contract of employment.

For more information about paternity and maternity rights, see Parental rights at work.

Can my employer force me to give back an overpayment of wages?

Your employer can only make deductions from your wages in limited circumstances. They can deduct tax and national insurance (NI) and they can also make other deductions for which they have previously got your written consent or which are allowed in your contract of employment. (Different rules apply for shop workers).

An exception to the rule that consent is needed to make a deduction is where there has been an overpayment of wages (or some other payments, for example, expenses). In law, the employer can recover these through a deduction of your wages even if this is without your agreement.

However, if your employer gave the impression that the wages were correct at the time they were paid, you did not know that you had been overpaid and you have spent the money (and to pay it back would put you in a worse financial position than if the overpayment had not been made) you should argue that you should not have to repay the money.

For more information about the rules for shop workers, and for more information about what payments can have deductions made from them, see Rights to pay.

Does my employer need to give me a certain period of notice before he dismisses me?

A dismissal for gross misconduct can be summary without any notice. Actions such as theft from the employer, violence or drinking at work have been found to be gross misconduct.

For dismissal for reasons other than gross misconduct, the amount of notice to be given will depend on your contract of employment and how long you have worked for your employer.

The law specifies the minimum period of notice you should be given:-

one week if you have worked for your employer for one month but less than two years

two weeks if you have worked for your employer for two whole years; and

one additional week for each further whole year's employment at the date the notice period ends (up to a maximum of twelve weeks notice in total).

You should never receive less notice than the statutory minimum but your contract of employment may entitle you to more notice.

If your contract does not mention notice then you may be able to argue that ‘reasonable’ notice should be given and this should be one month for employees who are paid monthly.

Can my employer dismiss me because I am pregnant?

If your employer dismisses you because of your pregnancy you could make a claim to an Employment Tribunal for automatic unfair dismissal (regardless of how long you have been employed) and also for sex discrimination.

You would need to be able to show an Employment Tribunal that the main reason for your dismissal was your pregnancy. You will need specialist help to do this.

I think I am being discriminated against at work because I am a woman. What can I do?

There are laws against sex discrimination to protect both women and men. Discrimination can come from anywhere. It could be a colleague, department supervisor, your manager or your employer.

If you think you are being treated less favourably than a man, the first thing to do is to have a word with other colleagues to see if they are receiving similar treatment or if they have noticed your less favourable treatment. Find out if anyone is willing to stand by you. If you can, try to speak personally to the discriminator and ask them to stop or warn them that you will complain officially.

If matters do not improve, talk to your union if you are a member, and follow the company grievance procedure. The only problem here is that the first person you must complain to may be the discriminator. This is where a union or willing colleagues can be very useful.

Your complaint needs to be in writing, so keep a record of events, dates and times of the discriminatory behaviour. This should be as detailed and accurate as you can make it. It is likely that you will be met with vigorous denials by the person you are accusing and you may have to prove that your allegations of sexual discrimination are serious.

If you do not get satisfaction through your initial actions, the final step could be to take the case to an Employment Tribunal. If you wish to do this you must apply to a tribunal within three months of the date of the last discriminatory act. You will need specialist help to do this.

What can I do about being victimised after I complained about being discriminated against at work?

If you have complained about discrimination and feel that you are being singled out for treatment that is different from others doing a similar job – in other words, you feel ‘picked on’ because of the complaint, it is victimisation.

The difference is that while discriminatory actions are possibly based on sex, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability, victimisation is unfair treatment because of other issues. Complaining, insisting on legal rights at work or doing anything that is legal and justified within the law that is followed by unfair treatment can be victimisation. If you have supported a colleague in a discrimination complaint and are treated unfairly this also amounts to victimisation.

You can use the law to follow up your complaints about victimisation but it is usually best to talk to someone first. Victimisation is often extremely difficult to pinpoint and prove but may be able to be sorted out quickly in an informal way and you can continue to receive pay while negotiations go on.

Taking a case to an Employment Tribunal is the next step. If you wish to do this you must apply to a tribunal within three months of the date of the last act that you are complaining about. You will need specialist help to do this.

I feel I am being racially discriminated against at work. What can I do?

There are laws against discrimination on racial grounds. Racial grounds include colour, race, nationality and ethnic/national origin. Discrimination can come from anywhere. It could be a colleague, department supervisor, your manager or your employer. Discrimination does not have to be proven as intentional - the fact that it has taken place is enough for action to be taken.

If you feel that an employer is treating you unfairly, there are a number of steps to take. If you think you are being treated less favourable than others due to your colour, race, nationality or ethnic/national origin, the first thing to do is to find out if other colleagues are receiving similar treatment. You should also ask your colleagues if they have noticed your less favourable treatment. Find out if anyone is willing to stand by you. If you can, try to speak personally to the discriminator and ask them to stop or warn them that you will complain officially.

If matters do not improve, talk to your union if you are a member, or follow the company grievance procedure. The only problem here is that the first person you must complain to may be the discriminator. This is where a union or willing colleague can be very useful.

The complaint needs to be in writing, so keep a record of events, dates and times of the discriminatory behaviour. This should be as detailed and accurate as you can make it. It is likely that you will be met with vigorous denials by the person you are accusing and you may have to prove that your allegations of racial discrimination are serious.

If you do not get satisfaction through your initial actions, the final step would be to take the case to an Employment Tribunal. You will need some advice and support to proceed further, for example from an organisation like the Commission for Racial Equality or a trade union. If you wish to take the case to an Employment Tribunal you must apply within three months of the date of the last discriminatory act.

Is there any special protection in the workplace for disabled people?

The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) is intended to help protect disabled people from discrimination in a number of different areas The act is not yet fully in force , although parts of it are.

Employment protection is in place now so employers cannot legally discriminate on disability grounds. There are some important points to remember:-

discrimination is lawful if it can be ‘justified’

an employer is only required to take reasonable measures to avoid discriminatory practices

to be liable to conform to the DDA the firm must have 15 or more employees.

There is growing case law giving examples of what discrimination is and is not ‘justifiable’ depending on circumstances, and what it is ‘reasonable’ for employers to do.

If you think you have been discriminated against because you have a disability, contact the Disability Rights Commission. If you are registered as disabled, you should not be treated differently from other worker for promotion, recruitment, redundancy selection or dismissal unless the different treatment is ‘justified’.

I think I'm being treated unfairly because of my religion, is this legal?

I'm Jewish and need to take Friday afternoons off work in winter to get home before dark and prepare for the Sabbath.  At the moment, my boss is happy to let me do this and make up the time during the rest of the week.  However, he is thinking of introducing a new shift pattern, which means I will not be able to do this any more.  Can he do this?

It is now unlawful to discriminate against any worker because of their religion or belief.  So, if your employer is introducing a new shift pattern  which will be difficult for you because of your religion, it may be that you are the victim of indirect discrimination on religious grounds. Your employer would have to show exactly why it is essential for you to work on Friday afternoons. If he is unable to show that there was no other reasonable way to re-organise your work, his behaviour towards you may count as discrimination on religious grounds.

I'm being harassed at work because my colleagues think I’m gay. What can I do?

I am called names, and teased by my colleagues at work, because they think I am gay.  I have spoken to my boss but he has done nothing about it, and says it’s just a bit of fun and I shouldn’t take it so seriously.  What can I do?

Any behaviour like this in the workplace that upsets an individual, can amount to harassment.  Employers are responsible for the actions of their staff, as well as staff being individually responsible for their behaviour towards their colleagues.  If you are being harassed , your employer may be responsible unless they can show that they took all possible steps to prevent the harassment.

It is unlawful to discriminate against, or to harass workers, because of their sexual orientation, whether the sexual orientation is real or not.

Since your boss is refusing to take your concerns seriously, you may wish to go through the company’s grievance procedure.  You could decide to take a claim for discrimination through an employment tribunal, but there is a strict three-month time limit from the date of the act of harassment, to do this.

When I was younger I got into trouble with the police. I'm applying for jobs now and I'm worried my conviction will stop me getting work. Do I have to tell employers about my criminal record?

The information that you have to give will depend on the length and type of sentence that you received and the job that you are applying for. You will always have to declare a prison sentence of more than two and a half years (or an equivalent period of youth detention or custody) if you are asked about any criminal record by an employer.

This applies to a suspended or partially suspended sentence too. When you are calculating the time it is the length of the original sentence that counts, not how long you actually spent in custody. So, if the sentence was for five years but you were given parole after two years, you will still have to declare the offence.

You will also always have to declare any conviction if you are applying for a job where you are working with children or vulnerable adults. For example, you will have to declare all convictions if you are apply to teach, work in the healthcare sector, work as a childminder, or as a social worker.

However, if you are not working with children or vulnerable people, there are some offences that do not have to declared after a certain period of time has passed. If your conviction falls into this category the conviction is considered to be 'spent' and does not have to be declared even if an employer asks you directly about your criminal record.

This fixed period is known as a 'rehabilitation period' and runs from the date of conviction. The length of the rehabilitation period depends on the sentence that you received rather than the type of offence that you committed. Some will be spent more quickly then others.