Passage of Substitute Holiday Act at National Assembly's Public Administration Committee Meeting on 23rd
Effective from August 15 Liberation Day... Expect Holiday on 16th
[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] As the substitute holiday expansion bill passed the National Assembly standing committee, a total of four substitute holidays will be created this year. The Substitute Holiday Act will be applied from August 15, Liberation Day, and August 16 is expected to be designated as a substitute holiday for Liberation Day.
On the 23rd, the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee held a plenary session at the National Assembly in the morning and passed the "Act on Public Holidays (Substitute Holiday Act)."
According to this bill, all public holidays that coincide with weekends will become substitute holidays. Although it will be enforced from January 1, 2022, the supplementary provisions stipulate that it will be applied starting from this year's Liberation Day, which includes a weekend. Accordingly, August 15 Liberation Day, October 3 National Foundation Day, October 9 Hangul Day, and December 25 Christmas will be designated as substitute holidays this year.
The substitute holidays are likely to fall on the following Monday.
The bill provides the "basis" for expanding substitute holidays, allowing substitute holidays to be designated on weekdays if they coincide with weekends, but it does not specify that the substitute holiday must be on the "Monday immediately after the public holiday" or the "preceding Friday." Therefore, the government will determine the detailed matters such as when the holiday will be taken. However, since substitute holidays have been designated on Mondays so far, it is expected that the holiday will be taken on the Monday immediately following the public holiday.
The Substitute Holiday Act, which passed the plenary session, is expected to be submitted and processed at the plenary session of the National Assembly on the 29th of this month after going through the Legislation and Judiciary Committee.
After the Substitute Holiday Act is passed in the June National Assembly, the Democratic Party is expected to take an interest in revising the Labor Standards Act and seek improvements. Some point out that workplaces with fewer than five employees are excluded from this Substitute Holiday Act, but considering the burden on self-employed and small business owners, it is interpreted as a plan to gradually develop the right to rest without overburdening them.
On the same day, Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Hyung-seok said at the Public Administration and Security Committee plenary session, "The issue of applying to workplaces with fewer than five employees will be addressed by revising the Labor Standards Act later, and I think it is right to guarantee the right to rest for the people who are exhausted due to COVID-19."
On the same day, Seo Young-kyo, chairperson of the Public Administration and Security Committee, emphasized in a phone interview with Asia Economy, "This expanded Substitute Holiday Act legally establishes the basis that 'if weekends and public holidays overlap, people can take a substitute holiday.'"
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