Booking holidays online, has anyone manage it yet?

[oldfashionedplayer]

I booked all my holidays for 2024 into 2025 over a month ago online. I was expecting to be off this bank holiday weekend and next week. It turns out that every single one of my holidays have been declined, all of them.
Apparently I must have done it wrong, which if is the case then how come they are in the system legitimately, they were just declined, it doesn't show the date it was declined though, only the day I booked? I don't use an app I only log into PC so no notification of decline that only can be received by app only?
So I now am expected to work over the bank holiday weekend and next week. Surely this is not acceptable. If online booking is this bad then it is unusable.
My manager said it isn't his problem so then who do I turn to?
I feel I should just take the holiday anyway as it used to stand that if no response after a week we automatically are entitled to take the. And this problem is not of my making as I have done what is expected of me and the error is not my fault?

I'm pretty gutted that my Easter weekend and week holiday is void and nothing I can do about it. My plans are ruined 

Its always better to use a paper form and take photos and notes of when you submitted and if you received back.

If you did it via the app then colleague help can see what time it was submitted, what time managers approved it etc. So you can also reach out with a ticket for that or call up - hopefully should be open tomorrow with ringing?

Managers only have 7 days before it gets approved and then notifies their manager, so be better to try and contact colleague help if possible for when it was declined, it may even show via the holiday print out sheet? Not fully sure.

As for @londoner the app is voluntary - colleagues aren't required to use it, you can find the information on the site regarding that, cause if it was then they'd be required to give us a company phone with it on or if we had to use it on our personal ones they'd be required to pay us for the data it uses, but there isn't any forcibility for using it  on a personal phone.

Hence the wording of "colleagues should" rather than must, and "managers should help colleagues with access and allow access if colleagues want to use the instore tablets or mpcs for the extra hours market" etc.

[Shoestring]

Thank you oldfashionedplayer.
I think in regard to the app I was wondering whether notifications are only sent through the app as I received no notification, not to email so how would anyone know if they are not notified? To be honest I don't log in online very often hence not realising my holidays have been declined to my shock.
So much for technology. We have been encouraged to book online in a way that suggested paper booking is no longer valid, I think we are being manipulated to save others the work time. Good to know though and I have screen shots of everything! 

[Sherwoodforest]

@shoestring the 7 days is when your manager is in the business not from your request,told oldfashioned a few times already but they still quote wrong,so if you request it while they are on days off,holiday the 7 days counts from their first day back in the business,me personally id of chased it up sooner surely as 1st april 3 days away,why have you left it so late?

[Shoestring]

@shoestring the 7 days is when your manager is in the business not from your request,told oldfashioned a few times already but they still quote wrong,so if you request it while they are on days off,holiday the 7 days counts from their first day back in the business,me personally id of chased it up sooner surely as 1st april 3 days away,why have you left it so late?

Yes I understand that, I don't know when he was away and returned, I'd have to query it.
I didn't chase it sooner because I didn't get a rebuttal so assumed it probably OK. Lesson learned, things in my universe are not always the same as in yours 

Yes, it is silly to wait to check on the doorstep of time, serves me right. But doesn't excuse that there is a gremlin that is out of my control, this shouldn't happen if the system is good enough to be foisted onto us yet is not fool proof.
I'll stick to paper from now on, primitive still wins lol

[Sherwoodforest]

@shoestring if your  on an older contract id of thought your atleast entitled to have bhol monday regardless,i book my holidays a year in advance as im a creature of habit,so come first april i,ll book my 2025/26 holidays to avoid disappoinment,gives me plenty of time for peace of mind and swap any nearer the time if i  need  to,but at the very lesst they should give you a reason to decline any out of curtesy

[londoner83]

The business is moving to paperless systems and as another post has commented some colleagues rarely if at all see their actual manager. It therefore makes sense to book Holidays online as your manager should if in work log on at least once a day (as they need to clear payroll exceptions) & will therefore see your requests rather than wait for a time you bump into them or hope Manager B passes a sheet of paper to Manager A.

There is a comments box they can fill in so good practice would be to comment if any are declined with a reason (ie too many of the team are already off and it's first come, first served).

Whist I realise not everyone has great computer skills or is willing to use their devices at home, instore computers can be used to book and check requests and management should assist you if you struggle.

 Like it or not but as the business changes you will expected to do more and more online yourself from booking holidays/ordering uniform/raising pay queries etc.

[oldfashionedplayer]

yeah if your on a older contract its voluntary anyhow and also just because "some colleagues rarely if at all see their manager" doesn't mean that you can't hand in via paper forms, or still be entitled to a holiday meeting.

If you have multiple managers you give it to any of them as they can still do it - so if you are on nights for example but are listed as under Manager A and manager B is the only one in that night, Manager B can accept the forms as you normally would see both managers so both could Accept it and decide on it.

someone should always be available to be able to take the holiday form unless they are out of the business for more than 7 days in which someone should be delegated - its not a "oh I need to wait until I see them to hand it in" it's a "hey i know Manager A is off tonight, you are covering, this needs handing to them" = that is allowed from asking colleague help.

I get the whole thing of "online makes things easier" but most can't login to begin with and don't understand the hours system / how to book properly, especially the older ones... its designed without ease of usage to be honest..

Can't do multiple at a time, if you only want to request a few hours its not possible even though there are posters showcasing it all over and training saying you can.. its a misled system, paper if managers can't be bothered to sort it, thats their problem, they are just as bad at sorting it on the system but paper means there is more a trail for the colleague vs the app.

[BritishRacingGreen]

I book separate hours - and full days/weeks - with no problem. I wouldn't be without the app or the ability to manage my own life outside working hours.

[londoner83]

Paper forms can be lost so it becomesa GA i handed it v Manager you didn't argument. All digital requests are time stamped and logged centrally.

[oldfashionedplayer]

True they are time stamped centrally and then it's a case of asking colleague help cause GA can't see the time stamp and like above if they don't check it or it's changed without them knowing beforehand, and then they want to check it, it's a process too...

Paper you sign and date and timestamp, take a photo, hand it in, make a note of who you gave it to, then when you get it back or don't get back, make a note of what time too.. Then you've got the log, then when they wanna go at you, you've got evidence and they've got jack all.

Centrally will help cut down on bad management sure, but it also relies on being able to get the information fast too, which at times is difficult.. If you've got a written record great, if they timestamped the app and kept a log there too then that would be acceptable but they don't, so paper it'll be for me.

[BritishRacingGreen]

So screenshot the app - times and dates are all kept for the screenshot.

[oldfashionedplayer]

Paper you get handed back on your next shift if they remember, app they can do it on their time off whenever, so that's a plus too  for the forms for them forgetting 

[StinkyPoo]

Stupid app down!

[arlo]

Stupid app down!

high traffic 😑

[mrpooie]

Anyone else my tesco app not showing next holiday year entitlement yet, therefore not letting them book?

[StinkyPoo]

I can't book either, waste of time 😞

[Kidder]

Still not working for me.  Even it's already showing 2025/2026 but still not showing entitlement yet.

[User 1234]

Beyond disgusting, up midnight and all night, App broke, then bad gateway, then no 2025 allowance, it's not good for anyone's mental health not to get sleep, then it's a lottery when it may come up, if you get what you need with your family, small stores are very strict on numbers off. This needs to be taken up by the unions

[Cookie]

Wouldn't imagine it will update today as being a BH , try again tomorrow!!!!
Hate this time of year 

[Duff McKagan]

Holiday app still not working then, absolute joke. I'm just gonna hand my request in on paper as i've done for the last couple of decades and let the manager do their job and book it in...tried and tested method vs technology that clearly doesn't work.

[User 1234]

Holiday app still not working then, absolute joke. I'm just gonna hand my request in on paper as i've done for the last couple of decades and let the manager do their job and book it in...tried and tested method vs technology that clearly doesn't work.

Stores refusing to accept paper, but it's going to be a lottery, nobody knows, clearly the resilience testing on the APP was never tested, or someone didn't load 2025.

This will stop families having leave together unless Tescos makes the logical decision to be flexible.

Unfortunately so many stores only allow a strict number off.

After pay - holidays is the next big thing- where are the senior managers, what are they doing now? Where are the communications?

[Gorgeous69]

I've put the dates in but won't allow to press next is it the same with you as well?

[StinkyPoo]

I've put the dates in but won't allow to press next is it the same with you as well?

Same with me. Got up at midnight then 3am to try😔

[Kidder]

My manager said it should work in few days so I screen shot my holiday dates and send it to him with message that I will book my holidays on tesco app when it starts working then 

[oldfashionedplayer]

app seems to work for me, though usual i just go in and hand the form in whether im in or not so got all the dates i wanted lol.