Half of Adults Say "Make Parents' Day a Red Day"... Strongest Support Among Those in Their 60s

SK Communications Survey of 9,482 Participants
Order: Parents' Day - Constitution Day - Armed Forces Day - Arbor Day

About half of adult men and women in South Korea expressed a desire for Parents' Day to be designated as a public holiday, according to a recent survey.

On the 25th, SK Communications (SK Comms) conducted a survey through its current affairs poll service 'NateQ' targeting 9,482 adult men and women, asking which national holidays or commemorative days they would like to be designated as days off. As a result, nearly half of the respondents, 49% (4,662 people), chose 'May 8th, Parents' Day.' Following Parents' Day, 26% (2,513 people) of all respondents said they would like 'July 17th, Constitution Day' to be reinstated as a public holiday, 11% (1,129 people) chose 'October 1st, Armed Forces Day,' and 10% (1,041 people) selected 'April 5th, Arbor Day' as days they wish to be designated as holidays.

On the 8th, Parents' Day last year, citizens visiting the Yangjae Flower Complex in Seocho-gu, Seoul, are purchasing carnations. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Constitution Day was removed from the list of public holidays in 2008 and is currently a national holiday but not a public holiday. Armed Forces Day has been excluded from public holidays since 1991 and is classified as a commemorative day. Arbor Day has also been a commemorative day rather than a 'red-letter day' since 2006.

By age group, the highest support for designating May 8th, Parents' Day, as a holiday was among those in their 60s, with 54%. Additionally, 32% of male respondents in their 20s expressed a strong preference for October 1st, Armed Forces Day, to be designated as a legal public holiday, showing overwhelming preference compared to other age groups.

[Image source provided by SK Communications]

In comments related to the survey, netizens expressed various opinions. Regarding Parents' Day, supportive views such as "There should definitely be a public holiday to comfortably spend time with parents" and "I hope Parents' Day is designated as a public holiday" were common. However, opposing opinions also stood out, with some saying, "If Parents' Day is a day off, there will only be fights over whether to visit the husband's or wife's parents."

Especially, netizens who experienced the times when Arbor Day, Constitution Day, and Armed Forces Day were all 'red-letter days' raised their voices. They cited reasons for the need to designate these days as public holidays, such as "In the past, Arbor Day, Constitution Day, and Armed Forces Day were all public holidays," "Constitution Day should be reinstated as a public holiday to honor its historical significance," and "There are no days off in April and July."

An Ji-seon, team leader of SK Comms Media Services, said, "The particularly high support for designating May 8th, Parents' Day, as a public holiday likely stems not just from a simple desire to rest but from many people's wish to spend more time expressing love, respect, and gratitude toward their families and parents."

Parents' Day Public Holiday Designation Failed 14 Times

Meanwhile, the designation of 'Parents' Day' as a public holiday has been proposed in the National Assembly 14 times but has been repeatedly rejected. Former President Moon Jae-in pledged to designate Parents' Day as a public holiday during his campaign for the 18th presidential election in December 2012 and again during the 19th election campaign, but ultimately did not fulfill this promise.

The total number of legal public holidays in 2024 is 68 days, with a total of 119 days off including weekends, which is two days more than last year. In the upcoming May, there will be a three-day holiday from May 4th to 6th, including Children's Day substitute holiday and the weekend. In September, the Chuseok holiday will last five days from September 14th to 18th, including the weekend. Notably, 2025 will be a year to experience the full effect of substitute holidays. In 2025, substitute holidays will occur during March 1st Independence Movement Day, May Children's Day and Buddha's Birthday, and the October Chuseok holiday period. Workers who have May 1st, Labor Day, off can take a vacation on May 2nd and enjoy six consecutive days off. During the Chuseok holiday period, October 8th will be a substitute holiday, so if one takes leave on October 10th, it is possible to have a ten-day break from October 3rd to 12th.