Exciting Changes to Our Employee Benefits!
By: Gareth Ainley, Senior Associate and Iris Chang, Associate
Over the last year, DFC undertook a review of employee benefits, with a particular focus on the annual leave policy. Our aim is to enhance flexibility and to be more inclusive for all team members as we understand that everyone has different needs when it comes to annual leave and staff well-being is our top priority.
Previously, DFC provided a generous entitlement of 30 days paid annual leave, plus eight bank holidays (pro-rata for part-time staff). Of these 30 days, up to four days are required to be taken during the Christmas break, along with three bank holidays when the office closes, as does most of the construction industry. Whilst the DFC current leave allowance is considered very generous within the sector, we recognise that our staff members each have different requirements when it comes to annual leave and not everyone celebrates bank holidays, or benefits as much from taking these specified days off, when this could be better used to suit individuals at different times of the year for religious festivals or other personal reasons.
We also recognise that those employees who have no need of their full leave allowance would prefer the option of a financial offering rather than lose unused holidays or have them carry over to the next financial year.
Given that this was a company-wide change, we conducted a survey and gathered valuable feedback from all team members. The process involved a survey where everyone could give their opinion, and following this, a working group was set up to review the different annual leave entitlement options and any associated implications.
The feedback we have received regarding these updates has been overwhelmingly positive and we are excited to implement these improvements for our team. The review has resulted in two positive outcomes:
Sell Back Unused Leave
Team members will have the opportunity to sell some of their unrequired leave back to the company, noting that the statutory minimum will always be maintained. This change enables team members to financially benefit from any untaken leave. It was decided that the opportunity to sell the leave will occur near the end of DFC’s financial/holiday year. This is different to the norm in the industry, where the decision is usually made at the start of the year with the payments made throughout the year. This was driven by the responses and feedback from the survey and is considered more beneficial to our team members.
Flexible Bank Holidays
We are also excited to announce that it will no longer be compulsory to take bank holidays as leave. Instead, these days will be incorporated into the overall leave entitlement (other than the three bank holidays that are taken at Christmas, which has been maintained, as this is a common standard approach across the construction sector). This gives team members the ability to use these days flexibly to suit their needs. For those still wishing to book the national public bank holidays, these will be pre-approved, with no need to go through the standard approval process as required when booking other annual leave.
DFC believes that these changes will create a more inclusive offering and provide greater flexibility for everyone. The outcome was presented to the team and the feedback has been well received. We invite you to explore our current career opportunities at DFC by visiting our Careers page, where you can learn more about our values and how you can be part of our dynamic team.
- Posted by Design Fire Consultant
- On 10th January 2025
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