October bank holiday 2026: holiday hours on Google, and what staff are owed

The October bank holiday in 2026 is Monday 26 October, the last Monday in the month. Google's help page says you can set Special hours for a holiday if you adjust your hours or close for up to 6 days in a row, and it suggests confirming your hours for official holidays even if they match your regular ones. Staff who qualify are owed one of four things, according to Citizens Information: a paid day off on the day, an additional day of annual leave, an additional day's pay, or a paid day off within a month. Full-time staff qualify straight away. Part-timers qualify after 40 hours worked in the previous 5 weeks. For a part-timer who has to work it on a day they normally work, Citizens Information says that is an extra day's pay.

When is the October bank holiday in 2026?

It is Monday 26 October 2026. Citizens Information lists the October public holiday as the last Monday in October, and gives 26 October as the 2026 date. It also says that on a public holiday, sometimes called a bank holiday, most businesses and schools close.

Most is not all. If your café opens, or closes, the hours on Google should say so.

How do I set bank holiday hours on Google?

Use Special hours on your Business Profile. Google's help page says special hours are for when your hours change for a brief period, so that your regular hours do not change. It lists holidays, special events and other exceptional circumstances as the reasons to use them.

Google says that after you save them, you can find them in the "Hours" tab in "Business information", or in "Edit profile" under "Special hours". It also says that for special hours to show on your profile, your business hours must be set to "Open with main hours". If that setting is wrong, your holiday hours may not show.

The same page says "More hours" is for services that run at different times, such as takeaway or delivery hours. It is not the place for a bank holiday.

What if the café is shut for a week or more?

Mark it as Temporarily closed. Google's help page says Special hours cover a business that adjusts its hours or stays closed for up to 6 days in a row. If you will be closed for 7 or more days in a row, or for an unknown period, Google says to mark the business as Temporarily closed.

A single Monday is well inside the 6-day limit.

Should I confirm hours even if they don't change?

Yes, if you are open as normal. Google's help page says: "It's a good idea to confirm your hours for official holidays, even if they're the same as your regular hours." It gives the reason as making it clear to customers that your special hours are accurate.

So if you open 8am to 4pm on the Monday as on any other, you can still add it as a Special hours entry for 26 October. Google says confirming makes it clear to customers that your special hours are accurate.

If Google has changed your hours without you asking, our answer on why Google changed my business hours covers it.

What are staff entitled to on a bank holiday?

One of four things. Citizens Information says an employee who qualifies is entitled to a paid day off on the public holiday, an additional day of annual leave, an additional day's pay, or a paid day off within a month of the public holiday. The entitlements are set out in the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997.

Citizens Information says an employee can ask the employer at least 21 days before a public holiday which of the four will apply. If the employer does not respond at least 14 days before, the employee is entitled to take the actual public holiday as a paid day off.

For 26 October 2026, our own arithmetic puts those dates at:

• 21 days before: 5 October 2026;
• 14 days before: 12 October 2026.

So if a staff member asked by 5 October which of the four applies, answer them by 12 October; if you do not, they are entitled to the day itself off, paid. If nobody asked, Citizens Information does not set a deadline for telling them, so our suggestion is to tell staff which applies well before the day. The minimum hourly rates for café staff are in our guide to minimum wage for café staff in 2026.

Do part-time staff get the bank holiday?

Yes, once they have worked enough hours. Citizens Information says full-time workers have immediate entitlement, and part-time workers are entitled once they have worked a total of 40 hours in the previous 5 weeks. Time spent on annual leave counts as time worked for that 40 hours.

After that, it depends on whether the holiday falls on a day the person normally works:

• If it is a day they normally work, Citizens Information says they get paid for the day even if they do not work.
• If it is a day they normally work and they have to work it, they are entitled to an extra day's pay.
• If it is not a day they normally work, Citizens Information says they should get one-fifth of their weekly pay, even if they never work public holidays.

Citizens Information also says that if a public holiday falls on a day that is not a normal working day for the business, such as a Saturday or Sunday, staff are still entitled to the benefit. There is no automatic right to the next working day off.

What are the other public holidays in 2026?

There are ten in all. Citizens Information gives these 2026 dates:

Public holiday	2026 date
New Year's Day	1 January
First Monday in February	2 February
Saint Patrick's Day	17 March
Easter Monday	6 April
First Monday in May	4 May
First Monday in June	1 June
First Monday in August	3 August
Last Monday in October	26 October
Christmas Day	25 December
Saint Stephen's Day	26 December

Citizens Information says Good Friday is not a public holiday. Some businesses close that day, but staff have no automatic entitlement to time off.

Sources

• Google Business Profile Help, How to set Special hours, read 5 October 2026.
• Citizens Information, Public holidays, page edited 1 January 2026, read 5 October 2026.

A summary of public guidance, not legal or employment advice. Where this page and the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 differ, the Act wins. Cupán Studio builds websites for Dublin cafés.