Clause 42

Every employee shall be entitled to a paid holiday at his ordinary rate of pay on such of the days specified in Schedule B to this Act as fall during the time that he is employed:Provided that by agreement between the employer and the employee any other day or days may be substituted for any one or more of the days specified in the said Schedule:And provided further that if any of the days specified in the said Schedule should fall on a rest day the working day following immediately thereafter shall be a paid holiday in substitution therefor.

An employee who absents himself from work on the working day immediately preceding or immediately succeeding a holiday or any day substituted therefor under subsection (1) of this section without the prior consent of his employer or without reasonable excuse shall not be entitled to any holiday pay for that holiday.

Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, any employee may be required by his employer to work on any holiday to which he would otherwise be entitled under the said subsection and in such event he shall be paid an extra day’s salary at the ordinary rate of pay for one day’s work in addition to the ordinary rate of pay for that day and to a travelling allowance, if payable to him under the terms of his agreement with his employer, for one day:Provided that no employee shall be entitled under the provisions of this subsection to receive double any housing allowance or food allowance:And provided further that any employee who is employed by the Government or a statutory body in any of the essential services as defined under Part V of the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 26 of 1955), and who works for and at the request of his employer on any holiday shall be given a day off in substitution for such holiday.

For the purposes of this section if any such holiday falls on a half working day, the ordinary rate of pay payable shall be that of a full working day.

The Minister may from time to time by notification in the Gazette add to or alter the days specified in the said Schedule.