Employer refusing to give me holiday pay

Nearly 4 months ago I started working in a bar; 5 days a week, about 30 hours a week. It’s not a huge bar and a couple of other people started working there at the same time. We are all meant to have accrued a certain amount of holiday pay in the past four months that we worked there, though management are being sketchy about how much, I think I’m probably owed around 9 days? A few weeks ago I became aware that we have to use all our holiday before the end of the year, else we lose it. So I’ve been trying to find out from management how much holiday I have to use. All of us new starters weren’t really aware that we had to use or lose our holiday before the end of the year. We weren’t allowed to take holiday for the first 3 months we worked here as we were on probation. Now they are saying we can’t take holiday in December because it’s the busiest time of the year in a pub, which is fine, I understand that, but they are also saying they won’t pay us for the holiday we don’t take before the end of the year. So at the end of the year we lose our holiday, that we have never been given a chance to take, and they get to keep that money for themselves. One person working there started after us, he is still on probation till January, so he can’t use any of his holiday yet. Though he has worked there long enough to accrue a few days. But if he doesn’t use those days before the end of 2014 he loses the holiday and the bosses keep what he has earned. Doesn’t seem like they would be allowed to do this, what do you think we should do? None of us have signed contracts Thanks. Tom

Employer refusing to give me holiday pay