26Annual leave with wages

(1) Every employee in an establishment shall be allowed in a calendar year leave with wages--

(i) in the case of an adult, at the rate of one day for every twenty days of work performed by him during the previous calendar year;

(ii) in the case of a young person at the rate of one day for every fifteen days of work performed by him during the previous calendar year.

Explanation.--The leave admissible under this sub-section shall be exclusive of all holidays whether occurring during, or at the beginning or at the end of, the period of leave.

(2) If an employee is discharged or dismissed from service or quits employment during the course of the year, he shall be entitled to leave with wages at the rate laid down in sub-section (1).

(3) In calculating leave under this section, any fraction of leave of half a day or more shall be treated as one full day's leave and any fraction of less than half a day shall be omitted.

(4) If any employee does not, in any calendar year take the whole of the leave allowed to him under sub-section (1), the leave not taken by him shall be added to the leave to be allowed to him in the succeeding calendar year:

Provided that the total number of days of leave that may be carried forward to a succeeding year shall not exceed thirty in the case of an adult or forty in the case of a young person.

(5) An application of an employee for the whole or any portion of the leave allowed under sub-section (1) shall be in writing and ordinarily shall have to be made sufficiently in advance of the day on which he wishes the leave to begin.

(6) If the employment of an employee who is entitled to leave under sub-section (1) is terminated by the employer before he has taken the entire leave to which he is entitled, or if having applied for leave, he has not been granted such leave, or if the employee quits his employment before he has taken the leave, the employer shall pay him the amount payable under section 27 in respect of leave not taken and such payment shall be made, where the employment of the employee is terminated by the employer, before the expiry of the second working day after such termination and where the employee quits his employment, on or before the next pay day.

(7) The leave not availed of by an employee shall not be taken into consideration in computing the period of any notice required to be given before discharge or dismissal.