Source: www.stuff.co.nz
NEW ZEALAND, July 21, 2009: New Zealand employees could choose to swap existing public holidays for celebrations or holidays of other religions, under an idea put forward as part of a review of holiday legislation.
Parakash Soma, president of the Wellington Indian Association, said that as he celebrated traditional New Zealand festivities, he hoped the general population could join in celebrating the festivals of other cultures, such as the Indian festival of Diwali, or Indian New Year. “If it’s recognized nationally then everybody recognizes each others’ culture.”
New Zealand’s main statutory holidays are closely tied in with traditional Christian days off, such as Christmas and Easter. Presently, if an employee wants a day off for some non-Christian holiday, he must either take it out of his annual leave or take the day off without pay.
Although many companies close their doors over the Christmas-New Year period and Easter, “there’s no reason why employees should not be able to swap the same number of days off to celebrate their own religion’s holy days… they should be able to work the current traditional public holiday at their usual pay rate and get the day they really want off on pay, said EMA chief executive Alasdair Thompson.
Minister of Labour Kate Wilkinson said that it is an issue worth exploring. New Zealand is becoming more multi-cultural and it is appropriate to survey people’s views on their holidays, she said.