A number of Health New Zealand/Te Whatu Ora staff are being told they must take three weeks' leave this Christmas - even if they do not have sufficient leave to cover it.
In an email, staff were told that leave was mandatory and would need to be taken from December 23 to January 10, which is 11 leave days and four statutory holidays.
Health NZ's chief people officer Andrew Slater later clarified it was not mandatory, but was encouraged.
The email said there would be rostered cover where appropriate for things such as essential works, and to "keep the lights on".
Staff were told where they do not have enough accrued annual leave, the "base expectation" is they will take leave without pay.
Reducing staff leave balances benefits an organisation's balance sheet - Health NZ is expected to record a $1.4 billion deficit by the middle of next year.
Jodi Sharman, a partner at law firm Hesketh Henrty, said employers could tell staff when to take leave under the Holidays Act but they needed to customarily have a close-down period.
"And yes, it could mean that some employees may not be paid for some or all of the closedown period. A clause in the employee's employment agreement is also recommended."
It is understood that other departments and ministries have customary shutdown periods but some were more relaxed about staff running up negative leave balances than others.
Some have public service leave where the days between Boxing Day and New Year are paid by the employer rather than taken from the employee's leave balance.
Slater said taking regular leave was important.
"To support this, we are encouraging as many of our clinical and non-clinical staff as possible to take three weeks of leave over the Christmas and New Year period. We want to give our people a good break so they can refresh and take the time to do the things they enjoy most.
"Staff who are needed over the holidays for clinical care or to support the running of our hospitals and systems, are being asked to make a plan to book some time off later in the summer.
"Staff who have insufficient leave or who are saving their leave for a planned break later in the year can speak with their manager and make a plan for the holiday period."
