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Q: What's up with public holidays?
This has been happening all year, so for dragon boat festival, coming up in June. We will have off June 10, 11, 12, but we have to work the weekend before (2 days) so in reality we are only getting 1 day off, how do you end up working more on a holiday than normal? This same nonsense has been happening all year with the other holidays.
I can't remember but I don't think we had this last year, is this a new policy this year?
Have you others teaching in public schools been getting shafted like this?
10 years 48 weeks ago in Teaching & Learning - China
This is a scam that has been running so long that all locals cannot see it as a scam, because they get days off.
It is not really an scam, even if many foreigners do feel so. In rfeality, the holiday is one day off, but if it does not fall on a Monday or a Friday (on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday), then in order to make it a longer holiday you work the previous week end (or "bank" two days) and then have 3 days off the following week.
Many western countries have solve this by making almost all holidays to fall on a Monday or a Friday. Dragon Boat holiday is a one day off, not a three days off.
Scandinavian:
It's a scam. In the civilized world, if a public holiday falls in the middle of the week the employee would be able to chose whether to use some paid vacation days to fill the gap to make a longer weekend, I've worked places where people could individually chose to work on public holidays. I am aware that e.g. an assembly line would be difficult to run if a guy working in the middle decides not to work, but as I see it this patronage is just a sign that only those at the very top has actual rights in this country.
The worst part about it is that people are brainwashed into thinking they have a long vacation, when in fact they do not. If you do the math "number of days in a year" - "number of days spent working" it doesn't look good for the Chinese worker
They've been doing this ever since I got here. I don't know why they do it but it seems like they are make up days which I can't understand. It's like the holiday is the reason we missed class so we have to make those days up. Big difference from back home!
As strange as it was when I first experienced this and thought it was a bit of a scam I don't any more. It's just the way the government dishes out the holidays, giving with one hand and taking with the other. I have discussed it with many Chinese friends and they all hate it as well. Try this system back home and there would be outrage and rebellion probably escalating to war and the overthrowing of the existing government!!!
You are still getting more holidays than most North Americans, stop complaining, you'll have a day or three off.
I am having off May 30 and 31, because of the International Children day.
I asked about June 10 -12, but they are not sure yet, what we will do.
Absolutely normal, and not a scam. If you check the 'official' holiday listings you will see that the public holiday for The Dragon Boat Festival is one day, and all public holidays are listed similarly. So using the OP's example: We will have off June 10, 11, 12, but we have to work the weekend before (2 days) so in reality we are only getting 1 day off
" We will have off June 10, 11, 12, but we have to work the weekend before (2 days) so in reality we are only getting 1 day off"
One day Public holiday (12th) plus two extra days (10th and 11th) that are days in lieu for working the previous weekend.
"how do you end up working more on a holiday than normal? "
You don't; basic maths, your holiday is 3 days, a weekend is 2 days, 3-2=1 therefore you have 1 day net holiday as per the official public holiday.
similar to the french revolution and the 'decade' it's a subtle way of telling people that even the days of the week operate at the whim of the powers that be, the CCP.
