Continuous and discontinuous leave

As long as employees have given the correct notice, they have the right to take any period of continuous leave. There is no need to wait for the employer to respond. The position is different for discontinuous leave (i.e. where leave is divided into separate chunks of time). An employer is allowed to refuse a request for discontinuous leave.

There is then a 14-calendar day discussion period. If agreement is reached, the agreed arrangements will go forward. If no agreement is reached or if the employer fails to respond, the employee remains entitled to SPL but must take it in a continuous block unless the employee decides to withdraw the request.