SINGAPORE: A Singaporean worker recently revealed on social media that his superior unilaterally decided to cash out his remaining leave without even consulting him.
Posting on r/askSingapore, he explained, “I work for a big foreign bank under contract, planning to clear my leave since I have weeks left but was told by my superior since they approved my encashment that I am not allowed to clear my leave.”
The worker clarified that he was completely left out of this decision, never gave his approval, and wasn’t even aware that such a discussion was taking place.
“Sounds quite absurd that I am forced to encash and am not able to clear my leave, which I thought was my entitlement? Is this allowed? Is this against any MOM or employment policy?”
“It is allowed. You should read your HR policy more in depth.”
Netizens clarified to the worker that leave is essentially “subject” to the company’s approval, meaning the company has the final say on whether or not he can take it. They also pointed out that if he’s nearing the end of his contract, the company might deny leave requests to ensure there’s a smooth handover of responsibilities.
While it’s definitely shady that the company didn’t even bother to give him a heads-up about this move, netizens urged him to accept that companies can reject leave requests due to “operational needs.”
One netizen added, “Sometimes they need you around for handover purposes, other times, maybe they just want to ensure that you do not start a new job with a competitor while you are supposedly clearing leave. If you start a new job early, you are supposed to be paying the first company to shorten your notice period.”
Another commented, “It is allowed. You should read your HR policy more in depth. Usually it mentions that in event of handover during notice period, employers have the right to cancel or block any leave to ensure proper handover procedures are done.”
Others also questioned why the worker was complaining, noting that many people would actually prefer to ‘encash’ their leave rather than use it.
One netizen expressed, “I would prefer encashment though – since you’re already leaving there ain’t nothing much for you to do anyway (at least in my case) but yeah i do understand for people who want to leave asap or at least don’t be in company until the very last day.”
Another said, “As long as you’re compensated, everything’s square.”
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