Holiday Pay for Hospitality Workers (UK)
Restaurants, bars and cafes run on shift patterns, zero-hours contracts and busy-season surges — exactly the jobs the 2024 holiday reforms were written for. Here is the 5.6-week entitlement, the 12.07% accrual and rolled-up pay, in plain English.
By the TipsPay UK editorial team · Updated $1
Key numbers at a glance
| Rule | Number | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Statutory paid holiday | 5.6 weeks (28 days full-time) | All workers |
| Accrual rate for irregular/zero-hours | 12.07% of hours worked | Leave years from 1 April 2024 |
| Rolled-up holiday pay uplift | 12.07% on payslips | Irregular-hours & part-year workers |
| Carry-over for these workers | Up to 5.6 weeks (use within 18 months) | Irregular-hours & part-year workers |
| Example at £12.71/hr | £1.53/hr rolled-up uplift | NLW age 21+ from April 2026 |
Per GOV.UK holiday entitlement and the 2024 reforms guidance. Verify your own contract — not legal advice.
How holiday pay works in hospitality
Every worker — employee, casual, zero-hours, agency — has a statutory entitlement to 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per leave year. For a full-timer on five days a week that is 28 days, and employers can include bank holidays within it (the industry norm: 20 days plus 8 bank holidays, with rota rules about who works them). Part-timers get the same 5.6 weeks pro-rated: a 3-day-week colleague gets 16.8 days. Holiday accrues from the first day of work, including during the first year, and pay for a week's leave must reflect normal remuneration — regular overtime, shift premiums and commission should be reflected for staff whose pay includes them, and for variable-hours staff a week's pay is averaged over the previous 52 paid weeks.
What holiday pay does not include is your tips. Tronc and tip distributions are generally treated separately from wages for holiday purposes — the tronc guide covers how those payments work. Your holiday is calculated on employer-paid wages, and the hourly rate used can never fall below your age band's minimum: £12.71 for 21+ from April 2026 (see the minimum wage calculator). On a 38-hour week, a full-time NLW worker's 5.6 weeks is worth 5.6 × £482.98 = £2,704.69 of paid leave a year — money that is part of your legal entitlement, not a favour.
The classic hospitality failures to watch for: holiday "included" in the hourly rate without any uplift shown (that is not rolled-up pay, that is underpayment); holiday requests refused all summer with no alternative dates offered; and staff leaving without pay in lieu of untaken statutory holiday — all owed, all claimable through ACAS and a tribunal.
Zero-hours and irregular hours
The January and April 2024 reforms created a distinct regime for irregular-hours workers (whose hours are wholly or mostly variable — most zero-hours hospitality staff) and part-year workers (such as seasonal staff who work only part of the year). For leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024, holiday for these workers accrues at 12.07% of hours worked: the maths is 5.6 weeks of holiday divided by 46.4 working weeks. Log 400 hours over a season and you bank 400 × 0.1207 = 48.28 hours of paid holiday.
Employers may also — for these workers only — pay holiday as rolled-up holiday pay: a 12.07% uplift added to pay each period instead of paying you separately when you take leave. On the £12.71 NLW that is an extra £1.53 an hour; a 25-hour week at £12.71 pays £317.75 plus £38.35 rolled-up holiday, shown as a separate line on the payslip. Two safeguards: rolled-up pay is unlawful for regular salaried staff, and your total hourly rate including the uplift must never be a way to disguise paying below minimum wage — tips, remember, never count towards it.
| Worker & pattern | Entitlement method | Example | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time, 5 days/week | 5.6 weeks = 28 days incl. bank holidays | 38 h at £12.71 | £2,704.69/yr holiday pay |
| Part-time, 3 days/week | Pro-rated: 5.6 × 3 = 16.8 days | 22.8 h at £12.71 | £1,622.81/yr |
| Zero-hours, 400 h logged | 12.07% accrual on hours | 400 h × 0.1207 | 48.28 h accrued |
| Zero-hours, rolled-up pay | 12.07% uplift on each payslip | 25 h at £12.71 | +£38.35 that week |
| Seasonal, part-year contract | Accrual + carry-over up to 5.6 wks | Summer season | Leave used within 18 months |
Figures illustrative at the April 2026 NLW (£12.71). Fixed-hours staff use days-based entitlement (3-day week: 16.8 days × 7.6 h × £12.71 = £1,622.81); the 12.07% accrual and rolled-up routes replace that only for irregular-hours and part-year workers, with variable pay averaged over 52 paid weeks. Verify your scheme with GOV.UK or ACAS.
Carry-over rules were also extended for this group: up to 5.6 weeks can be carried into the next leave year, generally to be used within 18 months. And from 2025, large hospitality employers should be watching wider employment-rights reforms — but the accrual and rolled-up mechanics above are the settled baseline. This page is general information, not legal advice; check GOV.UK holiday entitlement or call ACAS (0300 123 1100) about your contract.
FAQ
How much holiday are hospitality workers entitled to?
5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year — 28 days for someone working 5 days a week, pro-rated for part-time staff, and bank holidays can be included. Zero-hours workers have the same 5.6-week entitlement, accrued on hours worked.
What is the 12.07% holiday accrual rule?
For irregular-hours and part-year workers (leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024), holiday accrues at 12.07% of hours worked: 5.6 weeks divided by 46.4 working weeks. Work 400 hours and you accrue 48.28 hours of paid holiday (400 × 0.1207).
What is rolled-up holiday pay?
Rolled-up holiday pay means your holiday is paid as a 12.07% uplift on top of your hourly pay each payslip instead of as pay when you actually take leave. Since April 2024 employers may use it for irregular-hours and part-year workers only; it must be shown separately on the payslip, and your total pay must still at least match the National Minimum Wage including the uplift.
Does holiday pay include tips?
Holiday pay should reflect your normal remuneration, including regular overtime and commission where applicable. Tips and tronc payments are generally treated separately from wages — ask ACAS about your specific scheme rather than assuming tips are included.
Can I carry holiday over?
Statutory holiday generally must be taken in the leave year, though employers can allow carry-over and irregular-hours and part-year workers can carry over up to 5.6 weeks under the 2024 rules, generally to be used within 18 months. Untaken statutory leave can also carry over in some situations (e.g. sick leave, maternity) — verify with GOV.UK.
Is holiday pay calculated on my average hours?
For variable-hours staff, a week's pay is based on average pay and hours over the previous 52 paid weeks (ignoring weeks with no pay). For fixed-hours staff it is your normal weekly pay. Either way the hourly rate used can never be below your age band's minimum wage rate.