Friday May 1st is labor day and a national holiday here. Does anyone actually get this day off? What’s with these schools ignoring national holidays?
Yeah I also don’t have it off (not in that sense anyway).
Has there ever been a time when May1st was universally taken as a day off in Taiwan though? I thought it was only a select few workers who could, and most of them didn’t because of fierce breathing down the neck from bosses.
Its a big holiday in China i think. And thats why they upped the daily quota of Chinese tourists to 5000 to cover for the holidays.
I don’t have it off either. Apparently I don’t qualify as a “labor” despite the fact that I’m working. I’ve heard that the rule of thumb is: “If you get paid over-time when you work over-time, then you are a labor”. I don’t get OT.
Don’t know how true that is overall.
Labour Day.
What an oxymoron!
A Day? For the labourers?
They should get at least a week!
Me Too!
Paid overtime in Taiwan?! I’ve never heard of this. It would be irrelevant anyway. Surely the law would include all full time workers? I think this nonsense is something, the companies who don’t give the holiday, have created to justify their poor behaviour. I’m just fresh off a battle over CNY! :s
It’s a day off for everyone except teachers, who used to get their own day off but don’t anymore.
Kids still have school, so fair is fair I guess. Don’t most people still work?
We’re getting it off but only because we have to be at school on Sunday for the grand opening ceremony of a new courtyard. So we have a 5 day work-week, then one day off, then work Sunday, then Monday off.
i beg to differ…its a bank holiday and a govt. holiday…but according to my HR people offices are optional and have to do a saturday make-up if they do take it off…so completely mickey mouse as usual…
In mainland China, this holiday is huge. Everyone has school off and most people will not be working. Many people will join tour groups, sporting orange neon hats and being led by women with megaphones and big red flags.
Because teachers are not worker of course, oh wait a minute, aren’t they workers too?
The teachers don’t get it and don’t ask for it because they have a sweet deal with their pensions and special tax rate compared to most Taiwanese (them and the soliders). If they ask for the day off the parents will complain as they want the day off to drink coffee and read the paper and the teachers don’t want the negative exposure. Lastly teachers in Taiwan are not allowed form a union!
[quote=“headhonchoII”]Because teachers are not worker of course, oh wait a minute, aren’t they workers too?
The teachers don’t get it and don’t ask for it because they have a sweet deal with their pensions and special tax rate compared to most Taiwanese (them and the soliders). If they ask for the day off the parents will complain as they want the day off to drink coffee and read the paper and the teachers don’t want the negative exposure. Lastly teachers in Taiwan are not allowed form a union![/quote]
What special tax rate? (What pension? yeah ok the local teachers get one)
[quote=“Full Joie”]I don’t have it off either. Apparently I don’t qualify as a “labor” despite the fact that I’m working. I’ve heard that the rule of thumb is: “If you get paid over-time when you work over-time, then you are a labor”. I don’t get OT.
Don’t know how true that is overall.[/quote]
I get paid for OT but I barely do a stroke of work, so it would unfair to call me a labourer.
Shit, I don’t want it off! On Fridays I write contact books for 4 hours, finish at 4PM and earn $3500 for my laziness. Thursdays or Mondays, however, are bastards. Would screech a lot more if Labour Day fell on one of those. I really do feel for the average teacher who only gets home at 10PM on Friday nights, though.
Hurray for great proletariat socialist revolution!
So last week I found out a dirty little secret. The boss holds a meeting and gives all the local employees a make-up holiday for May 1st. Everyone has a different day sometime in May or June. The Foreign staff were not supposed to find out, but I did. I mentioned this and was told that we don’t get it because we don’t pay “labor insurance”. I do pay this. I’ve since written a very polite letter and had it signed by all foreign staff, submitted today. See where this goes. 
Does “local employees” include teachers?
Yes, “local employees” includes teachers.