One day after Premier Jiang Yi-huah’s (江宜樺) announcement that Saturday, Dec. 27, would be turned into a working day to make up for a holiday on Friday, Jan. 2, next year, more than 5,000 people, including 530 couples who plan to marry on that day, voiced their opposition to the decision, asking the premier to withdraw it.
In tears, a bride-to-be surnamed Wang (王) told a news conference at the Legislative Yuan yesterday that the change would ruin her wedding.
“We’ve been preparing for the wedding since more than half a year ago, and since there are only two months left, we’ve already confirmed everything,” Wang said.
“If Dec. 27 becomes a working day, at least half of the guests would not be able to attend — unless the premier thinks it’s OK for the entire company to take the day off to attend our wedding banquet,” she added.
She said that if they have the wedding banquet on the original day, they would lose more than NT$100,000 (US$3,300), and if they postpone it, they would have to wait at least another six months, and start everything over.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟), who hosted the press conference, questioned whether the sudden change is legitimate.
“According to a set of regulations on holidays, which was revised in April, the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration must announce holidays and workdays for the next year before June 30. The announcement may be postponed to Aug. 31 when necessary,” Chao said.
“That means that a schedule adjustment should be made at least four to six months in advance and therefore the compensatory workday for a holiday next year should be in next year,” he added.
Directorate-General of Personnel Administration official Wang Kuei-lan (王貴蘭), who attended the press conference, did not directly respond to questions.
She said that prior to making the decision, the Executive Yuan consulted government institutions, labor groups, industrial groups and business groups, adding that an opinion poll also showed about 70 percent supported the decision.
“We’ve checked the lunar calendar, which says that that Saturday, on Jan. 10, is also a good day for a wedding,” she said.
However, her response further upset the bride-to-be.
“Do you know how hard it is to book a banquet venue? It’s impossible for me to cancel the reservation for Dec. 27 and book Jan. 10 now,” she said.
Later yesterday, in response to public complaints, the Executive Yuan released a statement saying civil servants “could take a day off on that day if they have planned to attend a wedding.”
“No matter which Saturday is to be compensated [for a day off on Jan. 2] it will cause certain inconvenience to a portion of people. For example, Jan. 10, the Saturday following the Jan. 1 long weekend, is also a good day for tying the nuptial knot according to the traditional calendar. Therefore, considering the existing rules and convention, it has been decided that Dec. 27 would be the working Saturday [to make up for Jan. 2],” the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration said.
It added that civil servants and state-run companies’ employees “could file for a day off in accordance with the regulations of the respective agencies if they are to attend a wedding on Dec. 27, and the administration would urge government agencies to be lenient on approving such requests on the condition that the service would not be compromised.”
Additional reporting by Alison Hsiao
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