Staff leave planning in the EU and Greece: scheduling annual leave without uncovered shifts
Annual leave is predictable — everyone is entitled to it every year — yet it is the most common reason a rota comes up short. How much leave to plan for under EU and Greek law, how to collect and approve requests fairly, and how to build cover into the rota from the start.
01
How much leave to plan for
- EU: every worker is entitled to at least four weeks of paid annual leave, which may not be replaced by a payment except when the employment ends (Directive 2003/88/EC, article 7). Member states set the conditions, and many give more.
- Greece: 20 working days a year on a five-day week, rising by one day for each further year of employment up to 22; 24 to 26 on a six-day week (Labour Code, article 221 §1).
- Greece, first year: leave in proportion to the time worked, which the employer must grant by the end of that calendar year (article 221 §1). Intermittent or rotating work: 1/12 of the leave for each month of employment, a month being 25 working days (article 221 §2).
- Greece, pay: the usual pay, paid in advance together with the leave allowance at the start of the leave (article 222).
02
Build the cover in from the start
With four weeks of leave, a full-timer is on the rota about 48 weeks a year; with 22 working days on a five-day week, about 47.6. To cover a post for all 52 weeks, multiply the full-time equivalents it needs by 52 ÷ 48 — before sickness and training.
03
A request process that stays fair
- Tell everyone early when requests for the busy periods (summer, Christmas, Easter) must be in.
- Agree in advance how many people per team or role can be off at the same time.
- Decide how clashes are settled — first come, first served, or rotating the popular weeks year by year — and apply it the same way to everyone.
- Approve or reject quickly, and place approved leave on the rota before the shifts are built around it.
- Watch the end of the year: unplanned leave bunches up as it nears.
04
Leave on the roster
- Place leave on the roster as its own entry rather than leaving the day blank, so nobody books that person and the hours add up correctly.
- In Greece, days of short illness count as working time and are not taken off annual leave (Greek Labour Inspectorate).
- In Greece, leave is declared to ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ after the fact, within the calendar month after the month it was taken (Ministerial Decision 40331/Δ1.13521/2019).
05
Leave planning in 365shift
- Employees ask for leave or a day off; the requests for the period on screen appear above the roster, pending ones first.
- “Place” writes the leave into the roster with the same title and hours as a manually added leave entry, linked to the request; accepting or publishing the week approves the request.
- Auto-fill (AI Scheduler, Expert) leaves out anyone on approved leave and asks before using someone whose leave is still pending.
- Each employee’s statistics count the days of annual leave, previous year’s leave and sick leave taken this year. 365shift does not keep leave balances; the entitlement is yours to set.
Frequently asked questions
How do you plan staff leave without leaving shifts uncovered?
Plan the cover first (full-time equivalents × 52 ÷ 48 with four weeks of leave), set request deadlines for the busy periods, agree how many can be off at once, approve quickly and place approved leave on the rota before building the shifts.
What is the minimum annual leave in the EU?
At least four weeks of paid annual leave, which may not be paid out instead of taken except when the employment ends (Directive 2003/88/EC, article 7).
How many days of annual leave do employees get in Greece?
20 working days on a five-day week, rising to 22 with years of employment; 24 to 26 on a six-day week. In the first year, in proportion to the time worked (Labour Code, article 221).
Shift rosters and the Digital Work Card in one system
365shift builds the roster against your rules, declares it to ΕΡΓΑΝΗ as the working-time organisation and files the work card from employees’ mobile clock-ins.
Sources
The legal references in this guide rely on the official texts below. It is not legal advice; for your case, ask your accountant or lawyer.
- Directive 2003/88/EC concerning the organisation of working time (EUR-Lex)
- Greek Labour Code, article 221 — length of annual leave (Greek)
- Greek Labour Code, article 222 — pay during leave (Greek)
- Greek Labour Inspectorate — Sickness and annual leave (Greek)
- Ministerial Decision 40331/Δ1.13521/2019, article 2Α — ΕΡΓΑΝΗ forms (Greek)