THE next bank holiday is just over a month away.
Hundreds of thousands of people across Ireland spent St Patrick’s Bank Holiday yesterday celebrating Ireland – and many will now be wondering when the next break will be.
The first of bank holiday this year was on New Year’s Day, which fell on Wednesday, January 1, a time to celebrate the beginning of the new year.
St Brigid’s Day fell next on Monday, February 3, marking the feast day of Ireland’s patroness.
Saint Patrick’s Day, which was celebrated on Monday, March 17, fell next.
The day honoured Ireland’s patron saint with parades, festivities and a display of Irish culture.
The next bank holiday in Ireland will be on Easter Monday, which is on April 21 this year.
Banks, post offices, schools and most other businesses will close for the day.
And it will be less than a month after Easter Monday until the next bank holiday.
The first Monday in May, May 5, will be the next bank holiday in Ireland.
It will mark the first bank holiday of the summer.
Up next is the June Bank Holiday which will occur on Monday, June 2.
Monday, August 4, marks the August Bank Holiday, a final summer holiday for many before the back-to-school season begins.
On Monday, October 27, the October Bank Holiday will give the public another break, as the country transitions into the cooler months.
Christmas Day, will be the next public holiday, and will fall on Thursday, December 25.
Finally, the last public holiday of the year is St Stephen’s Day, and this will be observed on Friday, December 26.
MAKING THE MOST
To ensure you make the most of your annual leave, there are ways to turn 25 paid leave days into much more.
By taking the Friday before the May, June, August and October bank holidays off, you will be left with a four day weekend.
Taking four days from April 22 to April 25, you will be left with a 10 day break.
When it comes to December, take off Monday, December 22 to Wednesday, December 24, and Monday, December 29 to Wednesday, December 31 for a 16 day break.
DO YOU GET PAID FOR A BANK HOLIDAY?
Where a fixed date public holiday falls on a weekend, there is no legal entitlement for the next working day to be a holiday.
When this happens, workers are entitled to a paid day off in the same month, or an extra day of annual leave, or an extra day’s pay.
If you work part-time and have worked 40 hours per week for the last five weeks before the bank holiday, you’re entitled to a day’s pay if the holiday falls on a day you usually work.
Should you be you are required to work that day, you are entitled to an additional days pay.
If you haven’t worked 40 hours, an average of your day’s pay or the fifth of your weekly pay is calculated over the 13 weeks you worked before the public holiday.
There is a bank holiday nearly every month thanks to the new February day off[/caption]
