WORKERS were “cheated” out of £2 billion in holiday pay last year, a TUC report revealed as the union federation began its annual congress in Brighton today.

The report said some employers were deliberately denying holiday requests and had created a culture that led workers to fear that asking for paid time off could result in them receiving unfavourable treatment.

In other cases, staff struggle with unrealistic workloads that do not allow time to take leave, contributing to 1.1 million workers not using any of their paid holiday entitlement last year, said the TUC.