All workers in Israel have vacation days, which are accrued according to the employment contract, the seniority accumulated in the workplace and the scope of the job, but you may be surprised to hear that many do not take advantage of them.
Those employees reach the end of the year, remember that they didn't take advantage of the vacation days they deserve, and then questions arise like "How many vacation days do I even have? Can I convert them into money? Can the employer simply delete my remaining vacation days at the end of the year?".
So just before the end of the civil year, we will arrange for you with the assistance of attorney Amit Gross, founding partner and director of the labor law department at the law firm Doron, Tykotsky, Kantor, Gutman, Ness, Amit Gross & Co.
I have unused vacation days left in 2022. Can I "pull" them over to 2023?
The annual leave law prohibits the accumulation of leave.
However, the employee may - with the consent of the employer - take part of the vacation days he has accumulated (but at least seven days a year) and add the unused balance to the vacation days of the next two years of work, unless the employment contract or other arrangements specify more favorable conditions than those stipulated by law.
I had vacation days left that I didn't use, and the boss told me they would be "deleted" for me, so I wouldn't be able to use them or get paid for them. is it legal?
As mentioned, the annual leave law prohibits the accumulation of leave, so if the employee has accumulated leave days beyond the law, or has not used them during the two years following the year for which they were granted (see the previous section) - he may lose his right to leave on these days.
However, in order for the employer to be able to "delete" the employee's vacation days, he must prove that he gave the employee the opportunity to go on vacation, and that the employee did not do so for reasons beyond his control.
A happy payslip towards the end of the holidays // Photo: Illustration // A happy payslip towards the end of the holidays // Photo: Illustration,
Who can decide on the employee's vacation date - the employee or the employer?
It is the employer who is allowed to determine when the employee will use his days off - with the exception of one day a year, as will be detailed later.
However, the employer must take into account the requests of an employee who requests to go on vacation at a certain time, and as much as he rejects the employee's request - he must justify his refusal with substantive reasons and act in good faith.
According to the law, how far in advance do I have to notify about a vacation?
As part of the duty of good faith and fairness, the employee must submit his request for leave ahead of time.
As long as the employee wishes to take a vacation of more than a week, he must submit his request at least 14 days in advance.
Also, to the extent that the employee wants to exercise one vacation day at a time of his choosing (see the previous section), or any day from the list of vacation days to choose from (holidays and deadlines, for example) - he must notify the employer at least 30 days in advance.
I have vacation days left that I haven't used. Can I redeem them for money? And how do you calculate it?
An employee is entitled to redeem accrued vacation days only at the end of the employment relationship.
The right to redemption is for the vacation days that were not used in the calendar year in which the employee ended his work, together with the vacation days that were not used in the three calendar years prior to the termination of his employment at his workplace.
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