Labor Day on May 1 and Teacher’s Day on Sept. 28 should be designated as national holidays starting from this year, the National Federation of Teachers Unions (NFTU) and legislators told a news conference today.
Making Labor Day a national holiday has obtained bipartisan consensus, with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) proposing different versions of amendments to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), the group said.
It should be prioritized in this legislative session and passed into law as soon as possible to solve disputes that have existed for years, it said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Labor Day is currently observed by the private sector, but schools, public service jobs and the military typically do not provide the day off.
TPP Legislator Chen Gau-tzu (陳昭姿) said the party believes workers, teachers and every citizen should have the right to take a day off, and this right should be guaranteed by law.
Article 5 of the Central Regulation Standard Act (中央標準法) says that regulations should concern “the rights or obligations of the people,” therefore the amendment should be addressed as soon as possible, DPP Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) had promised to return the Labor Day holiday to teachers so that they share equal rights with workers, KMT Legislator Ko Ju-chun (葛如鈞) said, urging Cho to honor his promise.
KMT Legislator Wan Mei-ling (萬美玲) called for designating Teacher’s Day a national holiday to show respect to educators, adding that regulating memorial days and holidays by executive order contravenes the Central Regulation Standard Act.
The government should review the national holiday system to ensure its fairness and the rights of educators and workers, she said.
NFTU president Hou Chun-liang (侯俊良) said the dignity of labor should be honored, as making Labor Day a national holiday has obtained public consensus.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
RSS