Extra holidays for low pay staff

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/northern_ireland/6907579.stm

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Poorly-paid workers are to benefit from an extra eight days holiday from next year.

The Minister for Employment and Learning Sir Reg Empey said that up to 150,000 people would be affected.

Four extra days will be added to leave entitlement by April 2009 with the rest following afterwards.

The minister has also announced a consultation on whether to give all workers another two days statutory leave.

Sir Reg said: "Peter Hain when he was here, announced that he was going to give a further two days statutory entitlement to the people of Northern Ireland which would take us above both the Republic and Great Britain.

"There was little or no consultation about that and because of the implications it would have for business, we will have to go out to consultation on that."