Leave Dilemma: Should Sunday Be Counted as Leave When It's Between Days Off?

I am Shweta, working as an HR Officer. If an employee is taking leave from Saturday to Monday (3 days), should we count Sunday as leave or will it be treated as a holiday?

It depends on the company. Generally, holidays and Sundays between the leaves are not counted, and the same is followed in our organization as well. So, as per your question, only two days of leave will be counted (Saturday & Monday).

Regards,
Hemant Agarwal

The intervening Sunday should be counted as leave. However, it depends on the policies of companies.

Regards.

As per the statutory regulations, if an employee takes leave on both Saturday and Monday, it will be considered as "sandwiched leave," a concept explained in labor laws.

Thank you!

If Sunday is between two leaves, then we have to count Sunday also as a leave day.

Regards,
Divya

Depends upon company policy. Otherwise, its treatment on the type of leave is clearly mentioned in labor law.

We consider Sunday as a leave if a leave is taken on Saturday or Monday and it is unplanned. This policy may vary in different organizations.

Thank you.

Though one thing is clear: the sandwiched leave is generally taken into account. The more genuine view is that if the employee works in shifts covering 24 hours, it is likely to burden the company with overtime payments to other employees. Here, it is legitimate to count the intervening Sunday as leave. However, if the employee works the day shift with Sunday as a mandatory holiday, in that case, we should consider the leave as being bifurcated into two days of leave—Saturday and Monday only. Counting Sunday as part of the leave period is gross injustice and not a healthy sign. Therefore, we should frame our policy along these lines.

It depends on the company's policy. Different rules apply to different categories of employees. For workers, they are generally paid for 26 days of actual work (no wages for the weekly off). The Sunday or weekly off day is not included in this calculation. However, for staff members:

1) If the employee is on CL, Sunday is excluded.

2) If the employee is on EL/PL, Sunday is included in the calculation because EL/PL must be taken for a minimum of 3 days.

As described by Mr. Ragavendra, sandwiched leave is normally followed by government organizations. In most private organizations, only working days are counted as leave if the employee is on leave.

Leave Policies and Weekly Holidays

While there are provisions in the Factories Act (see Chapter VIII) governing Annual Leave with wages, most companies frame their own rules for leave, especially for the executive cadre. Different leave rules can also be framed for workers/staff, as long as they are not less beneficial than the provisions of the law.

Having said the above, I am of the opinion that where the quantum of leave provided to employees is liberal, then a weekly intervening holiday/off-day could be counted as part of leave. When it comes to sick/medical leave, a peculiar situation can arise if this is not done: An employee is reported to be sick on Saturday and continues to be sick on Monday, but being entitled to a holiday/weekly-off day on Sunday would not have his sick leave balance debited, even though he was not in a position to attend duty on Sunday if required.

Regards,
Gerry303

If an employee takes leave on Saturday and Monday, the in-between Sunday will also be considered as leave. Calculate leave for 3 days.

Hi Swetha, please calculate leave for 3 days. Most organizations follow the practice that any intervening leave, whether on a Sunday or a national holiday, should be taken into account. This approach helps us avoid continuous absenteeism.

Thank you.

It depends on company policy, but if a holiday falls between leave days, then we can't deduct the holiday.

Any rule or guidelines not mentioned in labor law are basically treated as 2 leaves on Saturday and Monday. Some companies are going through their own benefit and treat it as 3 leaves, but from an employee or normal perspective, it is treated as 2 leaves.

Regards,
Ajay Kumar

I myself wanted to know the answer to this query, and as I understood, this case should be dealt with through company policy. Am I right?

Some of my colleagues are right; this rule varies from organization to organization. There is no specific written rule under any act or labor law. Please talk to your management because it depends on your management whether they count Sunday as leave or exclude it. Both rules are followed by organizations in the market.

Regards,
Dk Sharma

Dear Shweta,

First of all, your query was incomplete as you have not mentioned the type of leave applied by the employee. Secondly, except for Sunil Sadar, everyone tried to jump to answer hypothetically or with uncertainty in the name of the company's policy without knowing the nature of the leave. We should not forget, the company's policy cannot go against the law of the land.

In fact, the counting of Sunday and other holidays along with leave depends solely on the nature of leave applied for. I found, out of all others, only Sunil Sadar has correctly answered your query. If the employee is on Casual Leave, any Sunday or holiday intervening in between is not counted as part of leave. Sunday becomes part of leave only if the leave applied for is Earned Leave/Annual Leave/Half Pay Leave/Maternity Leave, etc.

So, if the employee has availed Casual Leave, you need not count Sunday as a part of his Casual Leave.

Regards,
PS Dhingra
Chief Executive Officer
Dhingra Group of Management & Vigilance Consultants
New Delhi
[Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Leave policy varies from company to company. It is not a statutory compliance (except earned leave - annual leave with wages under the Factories Act 1948, maternity leave under the ESI Act 1948).

In our company, the leave policy is framed as follows: we have working days from Monday to Friday. There are two days off per week, Saturday and Sunday. If any staff takes leave on Friday and Monday, we calculate the leave as four days, including the weekend. If a staff member takes leave on Friday but returns on Monday, we consider it as only one day of leave, i.e., Friday, allowing the staff to enjoy the weekend off. This policy applies to paid salary for the weekend off days only.

Regards,
Ganesh K
HR Officer
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Yes, if an employee is on leave Saturday and Monday, then Sunday doesn't count as leave because every employee who works for 6 days will be eligible for 1 day off. If an employee is on leave on Friday and Saturday, then Sunday will be counted as a leave day. Monday doesn't matter.

Policy Creation Request

Please create a company policy after carefully reading the discussion below and post it on the notice board for employees to see.

Regards

In my view, Sunday should not be counted in any leave policy because this type of policy demotivates the employees. Most people want to take leave on weekends so that they can utilize their Sunday as well.

According to our company policy, you must be present either before or after Sunday; otherwise, three leaves will be counted.

Regards,
Chandan Kumar

You should give Sunday as the weekly off because, as per law, if any employee works three days in a week, then he/she will be entitled to a Sunday off. It is not mandatory to work on Saturday and Monday to avail of the weekly off.

If you want to count three days' leave, it will completely depend upon your company policy. If your company's leave policy clearly mentions counting leave if anyone takes leave on Saturday and Monday, you are suggested to review your company's leave policy before making a decision.

Thanks & Regards,

Sunil Sharma
Asst. Mgr. HR
V3S Group

It depends on the policies of the organization, but usually, if an employee is taking leave on Saturday and Monday, then Sunday is included.

It is based on company policy, but it is counted as 3 days leave.

Regards,
Nazmin

Depends on company policy, but usually, Sundays will not be counted. If the person is working in shifts, then it may be.

Usually, in most companies, it is considered a 3-day leave if an employee takes leave on both Saturday and Monday. However, the same rule does not apply if it is a sick leave or if the employee had informed and obtained approval for the leave 10 days in advance.

Regards,
Babu

Entitlement and Forfeiture of Leave

As per leave rules, employees are entitled to earn one leave for every 20 working days. However, if the employer has not granted the leave, it will be forfeited after the expiry of the year. Could you please provide me with details on whether the employer has the right to forfeit the leave?

Regards,
Rakesh

It depends mainly on the leave policy of an organization. In our organization, we consider this case as a 3-day leave, whereas in my previous organization, they do not consider Sunday, so it will be counted as a 2-day leave.

So, follow the rule book of your company.

The intervening Sunday will be counted as leave if the employee is taking CL or SL. However, in the case of EL, Sunday will not be counted as leave.

Regards,
Rajender Rohilla

Leave Policy for Intervening Sundays and Holidays

Leave: Intervening Sundays and holidays will be treated as leave. Hence, it will be counted as 3 days of leave.

However, where the wage board is applicable/established in any factory, the same will be treated as per the wage board leave rules:

- Monthly rated (MR - 30 working days) wage board employees: It will be applicable as stated above.
- Daily rated (DR - 26 working days) wage board employees: Intervening Sundays and holidays will not be counted.

Regards,
S. Srinivasa Rao Officer (HR-P&A)

Sunday will be included if leaves are availed on Saturday and Monday. It is known as a Sandwich leave as per labor law.

Regards,

It's my opinion that this Sunday should be treated as a weekend and not as a leave day. He/she will be taking leave permission from Saturday to Monday, but it will be paid. Saturday and Monday will be counted as leave days, while Sunday is considered a weekend. You have not marked Sunday in the leave register because Sunday will not be counted as a leave day.

Thanks,

Chander
HR - Exec.

Leave Policy Clarification

It depends on the type of leave. In the case of casual leave (CL), Sunday or a holiday will not be counted. However, in terms of earned leave, Sunday will be counted if it comes between the leave period.

Regards,
R. As

It is as per company policy... There are two things to consider in this situation:

1. What kind of leave the employee is taking.
2. If it is sanctioned (PL, CL, SL) or any type of sanctioned leave, most companies exclude Sundays.

If it is Leave Without Pay (LWP), then in that case, you can consider it as a 3-day leave. However, for clarification, please refer to your company's policy.

Thank you.

According to labor law, any holiday in a leave period immediately following it (before you join) is considered to be part of the leave.

Dear Shweta, I am Shweta, working as an HR Officer. If any employee is taking leave from Saturday to Monday (3 days), should we count Sunday as leave, or should it be treated as a holiday?

Understanding Leave Policies

As per the Shops and Establishments Act, a week off cannot be counted as leave if the employee has the balance leave sanctioned. For instance, if Sunday falls in between the leaves, it should be considered a week off and not leave, provided the leaves are paid (Sick Leave/Privilege Leave/Casual Leave) and not Leave Without Pay (LWP).

The logic is straightforward under labor laws; an employee is entitled to a week off after every 6 days (48 hours) of work. Sanctioned leaves (SL/CL/PL) are considered as paid leaves.

Please correct me if I am mistaken!

Regards,

Most companies follow the leave rule where if someone takes leave from Saturday to Monday, it will be counted as 3 days. However, if someone takes leave from Friday to Sunday, it will only count as 2 days as Sunday is treated as a holiday. Our company also follows this system.

Regards,
Pradip

All people are with you. Generally, if Sunday falls between two working days, then it will count as a holiday. No argument on it.

Yes, we can consider Sunday as part of the leave if an employee takes leave on Saturday and Monday. This means you will need to deduct the salary for 3 days.

Many friends have different types of views. As an employee in that position, think of yourself first. Sunday is a casual holiday. How do you count the leave? In an employee's view, Sunday is a holiday if applying for leave on Saturday and Monday; in between, Sunday is an advantage of leaves. Such that the view is yours, mine, and all of us.

So, finally, you should consider the two days' leave only.

Regards,
Vivek HR Exec

This issue is not regulated statutorily. Every employer can have an independent policy or leave rule, either providing for counting the intervening Sunday as leave or excluding it from the spell. I may add for information that the Central Government Leave Rules provide for including the intervening Sunday in the spell.

It depends on the company policies. In our company, if someone takes leave on Friday (we have a 5-day working week) and is unable to come in on Monday, all 4 days will be counted as leave. Therefore, even if an employee takes 1 day of leave, it will be converted to 4 days of leave in order to account for not being present on Monday. This practice is referred to as "Sandwich leave."

Hello Shweta,

Sunday is not counted as leave because, as per the law, the maximum working hours in a week should be 48 hours. After the completion of 48 hours, employees are eligible for one weekly off. In the situation of leave, Sunday is counted as a weekly off for operatives. However, in the case of executives, it depends on the number of leaves. If an individual avails casual leave, then Sunday should be treated as a weekly off; otherwise, the days of leave should be considered.

Ensure there is a single line break between paragraphs.

Regards

Company Leave Policy Overview

If there are only 5 working days in a week from Monday to Friday, then 1 day of leave is applicable (only for Monday leave).

If there are 6 working days from Monday to Saturday, then 2 days of leave are allowed (Saturday and Monday leave).

If an employee is working in rotating shifts and also on public holidays, such as in a hotel, travel agency, or F&B industry, it is necessary to consult with their department head to determine their day off.

All the best...

Sunday is never included when calculating leave of any kind as per labor laws. Your question indicates that Saturday to Monday would not be three days but two days only. I hope this clarifies the matter.

All the very best,

Regards

In our company, we are deducting 3 leaves (Saturday, Sunday, Monday) or we are giving one RH per year (restricted holiday). They may use RH in this situation.

Yes, if we have CL in our account, then you can apply two separate leave letters. Otherwise, if it's EL, then Sunday will be counted.

If a Sunday (weekly holiday) falls between leave days, it will not be counted as leave if the particular employee has leave available to their credit, i.e., if they are eligible for pay for leave days. If the employee is on loss of pay, they will lose the benefit of that weekly holiday.

Regards,
Babusivaprasad

It depends on the company's leave policy. In our case, we'll declare it as a holiday, but with my previous employer, it was counted as leave.

Regards,
Amit

Hello Ms. Sharma,

Types of Leaves

Leaves are of different types, e.g., Earned, Medical, Half Pay, Compensatory, and Casual. If Sunday or another holiday falls between casual leave, it is not counted as leave. In the case of Earned and Medical Leaves, it is counted as leave. This practice is followed in Government and most other semi-Government organizations. However, it varies from company to company, as they have their own leave rules.

With best wishes,
TR Chamoli

If your company comes under the Factories Act, then you should not consider Sunday as a holiday. (Read in one case study, which was published in Labour Law Reporter).

Regards,
Priyatham

It depends on your company's policy. Most MNCs do not count Saturday or Sunday when calculating leave. However, it again depends on your company's policy.

Regards

In this case, Sunday should be considered a holiday. Sunday/holiday will be considered as leave if employees take EL/PL. It depends on the company's leave policy.

Regards,
Vidyaranya.

Understanding Company Leave Policies

Everybody is harping on company policy. But nobody is talking about why and how a particular policy is decided this way or that way.

My question to all those who are suggesting that Sunday or weekly off should not be counted as leave is: will you pay 4-5 weekly off days' salary to an employee who remains on Leave Without Pay for the entire month? In case both Saturday and Sunday are weekly offs, will you end up paying for 8 days' salary to an employee, though he has not worked for a single day in a month?

As per labor laws, if Sunday falls between two leaves, it will also be considered as leave, depending on the company policy.

Regards,
Priyanka

Leave Policy in IT Companies

Mainly and mostly in IT companies, there is no trend where Saturdays and Sundays are considered as leave if they fall in between a period of leave. This is how we plan our long leaves or holidays. Along with work, employees also need time for their families and themselves.

Best regards,
Vijaya

Yes, it depends on the policy of the organization. If the applicant has applied for casual leave, then Sunday will not be counted. However, for other types of leave such as medical or earned leave, Sunday will be included.

You can't add Sunday as a leave in EL cases as the Factories Act 1948, Section 79, will help you. However, in the case of CL and SL, you can add it; this depends upon company policy.

Regards,
Manoj Kumar Sharma

No one has given a clear and concrete clarification of Sweta's doubt/question. Ultimately, it depends on the type/category of employee and the mode of salary.

If the employee is daily rated and payment is being made on a daily basis for 26 days in a month, then Sunday will not be counted as part of leave if Sunday is the weekly off day.

If the employee is an executive/staff and is being paid for 30/31 days, then Sunday will be counted as a part of leave for EL/PL, HPL, etc. However, it will not be counted as part of leave for casual leave.

I hope this clarifies Sweta's doubt.

There are no statutory enactments on this. We have to decide based on the organization's leave policy. Few organizations follow the rule of Prefix/Suffix of leave. There is no benchmark on this.

Hope it is clear now.

Regards,
Divaspati Bhat

Leave Policy Clarification Under Different Acts

In this case, if it is under the Factory Act, and if it is annual leave with wages, any Sundays or paid holidays occurring at either end of the leave period or falling during the leave period will be excluded. If it is under shops and establishments, whether it is Casual Leave or Sick Leave, Sunday can be prefixed or suffixed. However, if it occurs between the leave period, it has to be counted as leave. Much depends on the leave policy of the establishments. As per the question, the reply is given. If more clarification is required, contact without hesitation.

Thanks and regards,

RL Dhingra
Advocate & Labour Law Consultant, Delhi
Mobile: [Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
Email: [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Dear VK, like several others, probably you are also taking the issue off-track. I am sure you have not read the clarification given by Shweta, as follows on page 3:

"Hi Seniors, thanks for your valuable reply. I forgot to mention the type of leave. It's about Casual Leave."

Had you read the supplementary clarification given by Shweta, you would not have expressed the present views on the issue. It is not understood from where the question of the employee remaining on Leave Without Pay for the entire month has arisen when the question is very simple about Casual leave for Saturday and Monday only.

I know several of the members who rush to make their opinions appear in the forum read only between the lines and never try to read the views of others, as appearing on other pages. Not even that, even the clarification given by the member who posted the original question to solve his/her problem is also not read by most of the members. So, the issue is totally confused, and instead of getting a viable solution, he/she gets totally confused.

I am sure Shweta must also have been totally confused to find out conflicting views, including all off-the-track opinions leading to more complications, rather than solving the problem.

Regards,

PS Dhingra
Chief Executive Officer
Dhingra Group of Management & Vigilance Consultants
New Delhi
Mobile: [Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
[Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Everybody is harping upon company policy. But nobody is talking about why and how a particular policy is decided this way or that way?

My question to all those who are suggesting that Sunday or weekly off should not be counted as leave is: will you pay 4-5 weekly off day's salary to an employee who remains on Leave Without Pay for the entire month? In case both Saturday and Sunday are Weekly Offs, will you end up paying for 8 days' salary to an employee, though he has not worked for a single day in a month?

Dear Ms. Sweta,

Types of Leave

There are two types of leave: 1. Paid holiday and 2. Weekly off.

1. If an employee is found absent on both types of holidays, it will be considered as leave, meaning the employee will need to apply for three days of leave.
2. Some companies do not pay wages for the weekly off. In this case, an employee will only need to apply for two days of leave—for example, Saturday and Monday if the weekly off falls on a Sunday.

Most organizations follow these rules.

Regards,
Santosh Singh

If an employee is on leave during a month (30/31 days), then you will not pay him/her for 4 days (Sunday). That's why Sunday will count as a leave. I hope all the members are satisfied with my answer.

Regards,
Kamesh Kumar KHATANA
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

You can count Sunday as leave if:

1. It is leave without pay.
2. You pay for the month, i.e., 30, 31, or 28 days.
3. It is the policy of the company.
4. In some companies, if they avail PL, they ignore Sunday.
5. If it is SL, they count it as leave.
6. For Maternity leave, you have to count Sundays as leave.

Regards,
Clement

As per the law regarding weekly offs, an employee should be present or work one day before and one day after the weekly off. Otherwise, they are not eligible for that particular weekly off benefit.

Regards,

Conditions for Calculating Leave on Weekends

Two conditions apply to your query:

a) If your company policy for calculating the total monthly salary includes weekly offs (e.g., January 2011 divided by 31 days or February 2011 divided by 28 days), then you can count Casual Leave (CL) for Sunday too.

b) If the total monthly wage calculation is based only on working days, then CL adjustment on the weekly off is not valid.

Important Note for Everyone

Don't count or adjust Earned Leave (EL) on the weekly off.

Best Regards,
Global Overseas
New Delhi branch
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons], [Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

If it is CL/SL, then Sunday should be a leave, so it'll be a three-day CL/SL. For EL, Sunday should be excluded.

Options for Counting Sunday as Leave

Two options fall under this:

a) If you are counting the weekly day off as a day while calculating monthly wages (meaning in Jan 2011, calculating monthly wages based on 31 days or in Feb 2011 based on 28 days), then you can count Sunday as a CL.

b) If Sunday is not part of the calculation, then Sunday can't be counted as a CL.

Best Regards,
Global Overseas
New Delhi office
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Please note, if it is a factory, according to Sec. 79, Explanation-2, leave shall be exclusive of all holidays whether occurring during or at either end of the leave period. Under Shop & Establishment Acts, the Sunday/holiday at either end of the leave period is treated as a prefix/suffix. Any Sunday/holiday occurring during the leave period is counted as leave. I hope the point is clear to you. If you have any queries, please contact me.

Thanks and Regards,

RL Dhingra, Advocate, Labour Law Consultant, Mob: [Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons], Email: [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Dear Mr. Dhingra, Please review your opinion, as reading between the lines can lead to misinterpretation of the case and misleading of your client.

Section 79 of the Factories Act

Section 79 of the Factories Act pertains to ANNUAL LEAVE WITH WAGES, whereas the query is with reference to the casual leave, as already clarified by Shwetaa on page 3 of this thread. For your kind information, casual leave is not a recognized form of leave like Annual Leave, Paid Leave, E/L, Maternity Leave, etc., and is granted on a casual basis for emergency purposes by organizations. Naturally, Explanation-2 below Section 79 is about the Annual Leave with wages, not for Casual Leave.

Regards,
PS Dhingra
Chief Executive Officer
Dhingra Group of Management & Vigilance Consultants
New Delhi
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]
[Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Is there any rule that if an employee takes leave for more than 7 days (with or without information), then all Sundays will be counted as part of the leave? For example, if an employee is regularly working until October 18 and now needs to take 7 days of leave, will the Sundays before October 18 be included as part of the leave?

Regards, Megha Sharma
HR Manager
IT Company

If any employee who worked at least 3 days in that week is going on leave for Saturday and Monday, then we do not need to count Sunday as leave. This is because the employee has completed 50% of the attendance requirement. After achieving 50% attendance, an employee becomes entitled to Sunday. Therefore, Sunday will be considered between Saturday and Monday.

Regards,
Sunil Sharma

If you count these as casual leave, then Sunday will be counted as leave. However, if you take it as sick leave, then it will be considered a holiday. In addition to that, it depends on the company's leave policy.

Leave Policy Clarification

Holiday/Sunday/week offs between leave days will be treated as leave only.

Logic

A week off is a day of rest after working days, but one can't avail rest in between leaves. So simple and clear!

Regards

As per the CL register maintained, Sunday is not to be taken as CL. In this case, only Saturday and Monday are to be calculated. In the case of leave on loss of pay, three days are to be taken into LOP (Saturday, Sunday, and Monday).

Thanks & Regards,
Shivashakthi

It will be treated as sandwiched leave, but as mentioned before, it's at the discretion of the management.

I am Arun working as an Accounts Manager. If any employee is taking leave from Monday to Saturday (6 days), should we count Sunday as leave or will it be treated as a holiday?

Please guide me if an employee goes for earned leave from Tuesday to Saturday (26/12/17 - 30/12/17), how will Sunday dated 31/12/17 be taken. Is it considered as leave or will it be given as a weekly off?

Please note that Monday 25/12/17 was a holiday for Christmas.

Regards,
Sharmistha Goswami