"They are always very quick to respond and their advice is always clear, pragmatic and tactically smart."
Bollacke v Klass & Kock B.V. | CJEU
Background
The Working Time Directive (‘the WTD’) provides that all workers are entitled to at least four weeks’ paid annual leave. No derogation is allowed from this right although an employer is permitted to make a payment in lieu of unused annual leave at the end of the employment relationship.
Mr B had been employed in Germany by K & K from 1998 until his death in 2010. Mr B had been off work sick for most of 2009 and 2010 and at the date of his death he had accrued 140.5 days of untaken annual leave.
Mr B’s wife made a request to K & K for payment in lieu of the annual leave her late husband had accrued. K and K refused to pay because, under German labour law, the right to be paid for outstanding annual leave does not arise where the employment ends because the employee has died.
Mrs B brought a claim for the outstanding pay. The German court made a reference to the CJEU to decide whether German law was inconsistent with European law.
The Decision
The CJEU held that the employee’s right to be paid in lieu of untaken annual leave outstanding at the end the employment relationship cannot be removed by national legislation. German law was inconsistent with the right to be paid annual leave contained in the WTD and Mrs B was entitled to payment in lieu of her late husband’s outstanding 140.5 days annual leave.
Book a phone consultation
Apply for a FREE phone consultation with one of our employment law solicitors to discuss your case, how we can help and find out how much it is likely to cost.
Selected evening and weekend appointments available.
Tell us about your case
Our online form is the easy way to tell us about your case and employment details.
Short of time? Our ‘save and return’ feature lets you save your answers and complete the form later.
Reasons to Choose
Quantrills Solicitors
Trusted advice
Attention to attention
Speed of response
Pragmatic solutions
Becoming our client is a straightforward process. However, before choosing Quantrills as your employment law solicitors you’ll want to be completely sure we are the right people to help you achieve your objectives. Having looked at our web site, if you like our approach and would like to discuss how we can help you, getting started is easy.
Step 1
Get in Contact
Contact us and tell us a little about your problem and the help you are looking for.
Step 2
We’ll contact you
We’ll follow up with a free no obligation initial telephone call or email to discuss your case.
Step 3
Invitation to become our client
Provided we are happy we can help you, we’ll invite you to become our client.
Step 4
You instruct us
If you agree to our invitation, you simply have to confirm this is writing or by email and confirm your instructions.
Step 5
We’ll start to act for you
Congratulations! You are now a client of Quantrills and we’ll start work on your instructions.
At Quantrills we are flexible in how we work with you and how we progress your case...
In Person
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Get DirectionsBy Telephone
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
01473 688 100
Or request a call backBy Online Form
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
View FormsBy Email
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Email usLatest Employer Knowledge Bank Articles
Use our knowledge bank of employer focused briefing notes, checklists and case reports to obtain trusted and accurate information about key employment law and HR topics to help you learn more about your employment law rights.
View more