TAIPEI (TVBS News) — A recent survey released on Thursday (Feb. 27) found that 56.7% of respondents support reinstating a seven-day national holiday in Taiwan. It also showed strong support for expanding Labor Day holiday eligibility to include teachers and civil servants, with 66.3% in favor.
According to the National Policy Foundation's (NPF, 國政基金會) survey, a think thank of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT, 國民黨), 64.3% support making Teachers' Day, Taiwan's Retrocession Day, and the (Republic of China's) Constitution Day national holidays.
KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) highlighted Taiwan's long working hours compared to other OECD countries. "Although Singapore has longer hours, their wages are several times higher than ours," he stated. He pointed out that Taiwan has the fewest public holidays among neighboring countries, with only 12 days, compared to Japan's 16, South Korea's 15, Hong Kong's 17, and China's 13 days.
Chu attributed the reduction in public holidays to past legislative changes, stressing the need for the legislature to address this issue in the current session. He further expressed hopes that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP, 民進黨) will genuinely heed public sentiment, emphasizing that workers should be more than just a slogan.
