Will you get an extra day's pay next week?
By Maddison Leach|
A new leap year is upon us, and in just over a week's time the world will enjoy an extra slice of 2020 in the form of 'leap day' on 29 February.
The extra day doesn't really mean much in the grand scheme of things - unless you were born on February 29th and have been waiting four years to celebrate your birthday จC and generally passes by with little fanfare.
But with an extra day in the year, some workers are wondering if they're entitled to a little extra cash in 2020.
It sounds plausible that employees should earn more for working a longer year, and we're sure than no one would complain about a 'leap year bonus'.
Unfortunately, the extra day doesn't actually entitle salaried employees to a little extra cash, and workers who receive hourly wages will only get the extra pay if they work the extra day.
"Ultimately, an employee's pay entitlements on February 29, 2020, will depend upon whether they are salaried or receive pay according to the hours they work," Alan Price, chief executive of?BrightHR, told the Mirror.
"Employees who receive the same basic pay every month are not entitled to any extra pay despite potentially working on this additional day; this is because, as salaried workers, they are paid a set salary for the year."
Meanwhile retail employees, hospitality workers and people in other jobs that pay wages by the hour won't be receiving any specific bonuses for working on the 29th.
That said, they'll be making an extra day's worth of wages this year, so it's better than nothing (we guess).
The only situation where employees may have a case to pocket some extra cash on a leap year is where it's actually written into their contracts or if the extra day brings their overall salary under minimum wage.
Few companies include leap year clauses in their employee contracts, so it's unlikely many people will be entitled to more pay that way.
But workers on low salaries can look into how the extra day affects their pay rate, as employers generally can't pay under the national minimum wage on average.
So what's the point of leap day if we're not making any more money?
Leap years work to keep the calendar year synchronised with the astronomical year, as the latter doesn't adhere to exact 24 hour days.
This allows calendars to balance out, but it has also inspired many customs around the world.
In Greece it's considered unlucky to get married on a leap year and many couple avoid tying the knot in one.
And in Ireland and Britain there's a long-running tradition of women proposing to men in leap years, and especially on leap day itself.
Believed to have originated in 5th century Ireland, this was traditionally the only day a woman could propose, and it was unwise for a man to refuse.
In 1288 Queen Margaret of Scotland, who was five at the time, supposedly introduced a law that would see a man fined if he refused a woman's proposal on leap day.
The fine? A pair of leather gloves, a single rose, ?1 and a kiss to the lady.
