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.
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