Holiday Pay Update: Talks Paused Until Barnet Council Provides Key Information

Talks with the London Borough of Barnet (LBB) on holiday pay have currently paused because UNISON is still waiting for the Council to provide some basic information about how it is working out holiday pay for staff who regularly work overtime.

This matters because holiday pay is not just a routine payroll issue — it affects real money in members’ pockets. UNISON is determined to get this right. We do not want to sign off any arrangement and later discover it does not meet the legal requirements. That would risk further underpayments and create unnecessary disputes that we are trying to avoid.

We have told LBB that as soon as the Council provides the information, we will share it promptly with UNISON’s legal advisers so we can confirm whether the approach is lawful and properly covers all Barnet workers who work overtime — including staff in community schools.

If the approach is confirmed as lawful, we will move straight on to negotiating back pay. UNISON’s starting position is that this issue should have been addressed years ago, and we will be pressing for back pay to go back as far as possible.

When LBB reaches a final offer, we will share the details with members and consult on whether you want to accept the compensation payment. The final outcome will depend on your feedback once you can see what the payment looks like. Please keep an eye out for further updates