Hong Kong Ordinances

EMPLOYMENT ORDINANCE - SECT 41AA

Annual leave

(Past version on 30/06/1997).

(1) Subject to this Part, every employee who has been in employment under a
continuous contract for not less than 12 months shall, in respect of each
leave year, be entitled to paid leave (in this Part referred to as

"annual leave") calculated in accordance with subsection (2).

(2) Where an employee has been in employment under a continuous  contract for
a period specified in column (1) of the Table to this section, the amount of
annual leave to which he shall be entitled in respect of any leave year in
that period shall be the number of days specified in column (2) of such Table
in respect of the period.

(3) Subject to subsection (5)(c), times at which annual leave is granted shall
be determined by the employer after consultation with the employee concerned
or his representatives.

(4) An employer shall give an employee not less than 14 days' notice in
writing of the time he has determined for the grant of a period of
annual leave, except where a shorter period of notice is agreed to by the
employer and employee.

(5) Annual leave to which an employee is entitled-

   (a)  shall be granted by his employer and be taken by the employee within
        the period of 12 months beginning immediately after the expiration of
        the leave year to which it relates;

   (b)  subject to paragraph (c), shall be for an unbroken period; and

   (c)  subject to subsection (9), shall, if the employee so requests his
        employer, be divided as follows-

        (i)    where the leave entitlement does not exceed 10 days, it shall
               be granted on consecutive days except that not more than 3 days
               of the period of leave may be granted on any day or days
               (whether consecutive or not); and

        (ii)   where such entitlement exceeds 10 days, 7 days of the period of
               leave shall be granted on consecutive days and the remaining
               leave may be granted on any day or days (whether consecutive or
               not).

(6) If a rest day or holiday falls within any period of annual  leave granted
in accordance with this section, it shall be counted as annual leave and
another rest day or holiday shall be substituted in accordance with
section 18(5) or section 39(2), (2A), (3) or (4), as the case may require.
(Amended 137 of 1997 s. 5)

(7) No period of total incapacity for work by reason of sickness or injury
occurring during a period of annual leave shall count as part of that
annual leave unless it commences after the commencement of the period of
annual leave.

(8) Where-

   (a)  an employer continues to employ an employee after the expiration of a
        period during which annual leave should have been granted to him and
        the employer has not granted that leave, then at the option of the
        employee but subject to paragraph (b) the employer shall (whether or
        not proceedings have been taken for an offence under
        section 63(4)(e))-

        (i)    pay to the employee, in addition to any pay due to him,
               compensation equal in amount to the annual leave pay which he
               would have received had the leave been granted so as to end on
               the expiration of the period during which it should have been
               granted; or

        (ii)   grant the employee paid leave equal to the leave which should
               have been granted;

   (b)  an employee opts under paragraph (a) to take paid leave, he shall take
        the leave on such day or days as may be agreed to by the employer and
        him or, if there is no such agreement, as shall be specified by the
        employer.

(9) Where-

   (a)  an employer proposes to close down his business or part thereof for
        the purpose of granting annual leave to any of his employees; and

   (b)  notice of the proposed close down is duly given under section  41F ;
        and

   (c)  such close down will not result in any person who has been in
        employment in the business under a continuous contract for 12 months
        or more having to take annual leave on fewer consecutive days than-

        (i)    where his leave entitlement does not exceed 10 days, the number
               of consecutive days' leave that would be required to be granted
               under subsection (5)(c)(i) were his leave being divided under
               that subsection;

        (ii)   7 days where his leave entitlement exceeds 10 days, then
               nothing in this section shall prevent or restrict, or be
               construed as preventing or restricting, the close down.

(10) For the avoidance of doubt it is declared that annual leave is, and shall
be granted, in addition to the rest days, holidays and maternity leave to
which an employee is entitled under this Ordinance.

TABLE

(2)

Number of days' annual leave
for a leave year ending-

(1)

Period of employment
in the part of 1990
beginning on the
coming into
operation of this
Table and ending
on the following
31 December

in
1991

in
1992

in
1993
in 1994
or in any
subsequent
year At least 1 year but less than 3 years 7 7 7 7 7 At least 3 years but less
than 4 years 8 8 8 8 8 At least 4 years but less than 5 years 9 9 9 9 9 At
least 5 years but less than 6 years 10 10 10 10 10 At least 6 years but less
than 7 years 10 11 11 11 11 At least 7 years but less than 8 years 10 11 12 12
12 At least 8 years but less than 9 years 10 11 12 13 13 At least 9 years 10
11 12 13 14 (Added 53 of 1990 s. 2)