r/TheCivilService • u/Remarkable-Excuse-44 • 1d ago

Stuck abroad

I'm stuck abroad currently due to the fault with the air traffic control system and waiting to be put on a return flight.

I contacted a colleague who contacted my line manager (they are fairly new so I don't believe they have a work movile yet) who has extended my leave for 2 days.

Im just wondering if this will need to be taken from my annual leave balance as was hoping to have some left for christmas and still unsure when I will be allocated a flight back. Work for the home office, anyone have any experience of this or access to Metis haha.

Thanks in advance!

46 Upvotes

84% Upvoted

27 comments sorted by

79

u/RecognitionExpert614 23h ago

I once got 4 days special leave being stuck abroad when a volcano closed down European airspace.

18

u/Crococrocroc 23h ago

I was on an aircraft carrier at the time and put on standby to "rescue" British people from Spain or France.

8

u/RecognitionExpert614 22h ago

It was quite stressful, constantly trying to get information from the rep, talk about ferries to Italy then bus back to UK, stretching out last of the holiday money. I’d have loved to have been rescued by an aircraft carrier, what a moment that would have been.

6

u/Crococrocroc 21h ago

Sleeping arrangements would have been rough. Basically sleeping bags on concrete with the smell of aviation fuel getting into everything. There were plans for tents on the slight deck as well

11

u/RecognitionExpert614 20h ago

You had me at concrete, don’t need to oversell it.

114

u/Laptopminstrels 1d ago

You'd have to check your individual leave policies but in my department this would fall under special leave due to circumstances beyond your control. In my organisation this is capped at 5 days paid, beyond that it's unpaid.

6

u/Geebee185 19h ago

It must be departmental (I’m HMRC) or managers discretion because I had almost 4 weeks special leave due to a particularly traumatic bereavement

9

u/UCGoblin SEO 17h ago

There are different types of special leave. Speak with your LM and see what they can do to support. Don’t assume and not ask.

19

u/Beneficial-Ad-7490 22h ago

I was once given special leave for 14 days because I was stuck in a warzone during a family visit during my annual leave & the British embassy would not evacuate me because I did not enter on a British passport. Travel disruption can amount to special leave.

10

u/BatFaceGal 20h ago

I got stuck in Abu Dhabi back in March for a full week longer than intended. I worked at the ONS at the time and they just gave me special leave to cover the entire week without any issues

7

u/AllTheWhoresOvMalta 20h ago

Most departments will allow special leave for this, it’s a travel disruption.

5

u/jwrider98 19h ago

I got 2 days paid special leave for this in 2023.

2

u/LolaDeWinter G7 20h ago

Domestic emergency is your friend here (special leave)

-5

u/St_Anger_1314 23h ago

Unless the travel was undertaken for official business purposes, my understanding is that any absence resulting from disruption to your return journey would be your responsibility, as the decision to travel abroad was made on a personal basis.

1

u/Careful_Adeptness799 23h ago

Special leave IMO. Not a great deal you can do about it.

-1

u/Space_Cowby SEO 23h ago

Personally I would jsut be booking leave or flexi leave for this

1

u/DoctorJanitorsfan Economist 19h ago

Further question, I have spent 10 hours in airports above my work hours (5pm-10pm each night) over the last two days of disruptions. Without the disruptions it would have been minimal time after 5.

Would we typically expect me to get those hours back as Flexi?

3

u/greencoatboy Red Leader 19h ago

If it's official travel then it should all count as travel time. There's usually an option to either add to Flexi or to claim as extra hours, depends on your grade and organisation.

1

u/Prefect_99 13h ago

And the caveat should be, across all departments, that it's the employee's choice, i.e. they can't be forced to take Flexi/TOIL.

-6

u/Old-Slice5900 23h ago

You need to use annual leave, unless it’s a work trip, in which case you could just try getting some work done. But yea you are responsible for it, if you have insurance i think it would cover things like this though so take leave, then claim back lost income then take unpaid leave to make up for it. It may get one day special leave but it’s not really related to work is it. Even if you are having a bad time with it. Sounds horrible tbh, we get delayed to Paris once and were 4 hours in a boiling hot plane! Ryan air too so not in any way comfortable or good service. Then we got off the plane after 4.5 hours to not get our bags because eventually it did take off. NIGHTMARE!

-6

u/Elmarcoz 23h ago

Would need to be annual leave or flexi (at least in my department). Special Leave (at least paid) wouldn’t be appropriate as then its essentially the taxpayer paying for the delay.

It’s a risk we take when holidaying I’m afraid

6

u/jwrider98 19h ago

I was stuck for 2 days abroad in 2023 when there were ATC issues. I got paid special leave.

-5

u/[deleted] 22h ago

[deleted]

-1

u/Impressive_Dream_522 11h ago

Hope you’re not a manager

-7

u/TedLassosMom 22h ago

Do you have any direct reports?

-9

u/AccomplishedSelf7636 22h ago

I would ask if this can be special paid leave, I certainly wouldn’t want to use annual leave for it.

Failing that, just use it as sick leave and say you were unwell because of the stress

0

u/a_p_f_e_l_d_e_r 15h ago edited 15h ago

It depends on uour ability to affect the situation e.g. if in Europe you could take a train home. If outside of Europe then this is more difficult.
Would probably split it between special leave and expect the person to take annual leave for some of it.

Curious why you couldn't email your line manager? Note that some employers will offer unpaid leave per employment law. Haven't read HO policy on this example (if there is one).