More Bank Holidays...

[ToraToraTora]

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-28399377
I'm all for more bank holidays but surely they should be for British commemorations. Eg St Georges day or Trafalgar day...

[black_cat51]

well, they have turned it down.

[VHG]

St George was born in Lydda, Roman Palestine and he never set foot in Britain so hardly British.

Trafalgar was a battle we fought against the Spanish and French over 200 years ago, hardly the sort of thing we want to celebrate nowadays when we are all part of the EU.

However I hope we never have a bank holiday for Eid or Diwali or it will be a sure sign we have at last lost our identity.

[Buenchico]

I think that it's time that be abandoned the idea of bank holidays altogether.

Of course I'm not suggesting that anyone should get less holiday each year; I'm simply putting forward the idea that having fixed dates for holidays (other than possibly around the Christmas period) no longer makes much sense.

For example, we have two public holidays in May. However (now that we've got 7 day shopping plus, of course, transport services running on those days and emergency services functioning as well) many people still have to work, so the concept of fixed public holidays is already largely meaningless to them. Further, many people find that they're forced to take two days off in May when they might, for example, have preferred to have had two days off in August.

If we got rid of 5 of the current public holidays, but still gave everyone the same amount of holiday each year, that would mean that people would be able to go away for an extra week at a time of their choosing (subject, of course, to their employer's approval), rather than have 5 rather useless days dotted around during the year.

However, if we're going to keep what we've got (and add to them) then St George's Day probably isn't a good idea, simply because it's so close to the two holidays in May.

Trafalgar Day might make more sense (particularly as it might fit in with some schools' half-term holidays) but I'd be prepared to bet that over 90% of the population don't know when it is (I admit to googling it!) and probably over 50% have never even heard of it.

I'd be happy to support a Diwali holiday (assuming, of course, that I can't win my argument to get rid of public holidays anyway), if only because Diwali is such a fun festival.

The problem with a holiday for Eid al-Fitr is that the date varies so much. This year, for example, it would mean an extra public holiday in July but in 3 years time it would be in June and in 2020 on exactly the same day as the second May Bank Holiday, before getting closer year-by-year to Easter and then to Christmas.

[237SJ]

I agree with Chris. Let people take bank holidays when they want them instead of fixed dates. That would avoid the proble s on roads and in airports etc wjen everyone is doing everything at the same time.

[Brenden]

St. George is our patron saint, same as St David and St. Patrick are to Wales and Ireland, who are both celebrated with a public holiday - so yes, let us have a St Geoege's day. No public holidays for Eid or Diwali let the host countries celebrate them.

[ludwig]

I couldn't care less what the occasion is. I'll take any extra bank holidays they want to give.

[Farriercm]

Every Monday,Should be a Bank Holiday.

[Svejk]

'working class' people no longer get paid for them anyway.
and before you all jump up and down to say you get paid for them, I'm talking about yer proper working classes, not the lower middle-classes who pervade this site. ;)

[dave50]

I don't know anyone who doesn't get paid holidays.

[jno]

St George isn't British, he's English.

[Svejk]

you do now, dave. I've never been paid for them on sites & I'd be very surprised if people working for agencies and zero hour contract people(who are increasingly taking over all the traditional jobs) get paid for them.

[boxtops]

Dave, be assured that there are plenty of people who don't get paid holidays. Those of us with zero hours contracts, for a start....

My NHS job actually gave us a total holiday allowance which included 8 bank holidays, as so many of us were required to work in patient care on holildays. You just took the total allowance, regardless of when you took it.

[Old_Geezer]

You shove it into the annual leave allowance and over the years it'll disappear. Employers will simply offer the same allowance as now and the "bank" ones will be no more. Most countries have fixed days when we can all (or most of us) get a break. I quite like it as it is. It'd just be nice to have one, to give a long weekend, once a fortnight.

[Old_Geezer]

I thought he was Turkish jno.

[boxtops]

He's the Saint adopted by the English, then..... definitely not British, the others have Andrew, Patrick and David.

[ToraToraTora]

yes and St Patrick was welsh. I didn't intend to start the anti British off. St George is the patron saint, simple.
"Trafalgar was a battle we fought against the Spanish and French over 200 years ago, hardly the sort of thing we want to celebrate nowadays when we are all part of the EU." - yes indeed wish we had Nelson about today!

"Trafalgar Day might make more sense (particularly as it might fit in with some schools' half-term holidays) but I'd be prepared to bet that over 90% of the population don't know when it is (I admit to googling it!) and probably over 50% have never even heard of it. " - Sadly Chris you are probably right and generation of anti British brainwashing by right on lefty teachers has seen to that, bet they all know Saint Mandela's Birthday!

OG is correct employers would absorb it if it was shoved on the leave allowance.

[Buenchico]

>>>Sadly Chris you are probably right and generation of anti British brainwashing by right on lefty teachers has seen to that

I attended a very traditional junior school (1958-1964) followed by an exceptionally traditional and conservative grammar school (1964-1971). With just the possible exception of one young, trendy English teacher, there were certainly no 'lefties' involved in my education! However even I had never heard of Trafalagar Day until I was well over 40.

[ToraToraTora]

....yes but you'd heard of the battle of Trafalgar??

[Buenchico]

I'd heard of it but I don't think that we ever studied that period of history, so I never came across it within the school curriculum.

[LyndaB]

As bank holidays usually fall on a Monday, which is my day off, I lose out on them. So yes, I would love to see them gone and replaced with extra holiday leave - but I won't hold mt breath ;)