European Court Rules that Holiday pay should include lost commission

The ECJ came to the decision in the wake of the Lock vs. British Gas Trading Limited. Lock, who was a sales consultant at British Gas, made 60% of his total salary through commission, with the balance being his basic pay.

After taking two weeks paid annual leave in December 2011, Mr Lock’s finances suffered after the holiday due to the lack of commission whilst away and subsequently brought a lost holiday pay claim forward.

Regarding how to determine the amount of commission payable during annual leave, the Court ruled that holiday pay must be calculated in such a way as to correspond to the normal remuneration received by the worker.