# Public/Bank Holidays. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 1, 2004, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546 "2004-12-01T19:05:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546/21 "2004-12-02T18:45:16Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > The average allowance [in Britain] I’d say is 20 days. Actually, four weeks, i.e. 20 days for full-time workers, is the statutory minimum in the UK, and AFAIK across the EU. So the average must be a bit higher. Mind you, 20+ days was the norm before there was any law about it. ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546/22 "2004-12-02T19:41:41Z")
Some sneaky employers ( including a certain hamburger chain ) tried to include all public holidays into the statuary 20 days when it it became law a few years ago in the UK. They were given short shrift by the powers that be. The actual law is the EU Working Time Directive which not only has the 20 day holiday rule, but another one on the maximum working week. This is 48 hours , averaged over 18 weeks. At the moment workers can volunteer to opt out of this , but next year they will not have this option. ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546/23 "2004-12-02T19:52:44Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > What do the main doper-countries get on average, as far as Bank Holidays are concerned?England gets 8 Bank Holidays per year. The average Holiday allowance I’d say is 20 days. That equals 28 days (not including the two days off every week).The Isle of Man gets 10 Bank Holidays (England’s 8 plus Tynwald day and Senior Race Day) plus an average 20 day allowance from employers. What about USA, AUS, Euro, Far-east, Mid-east etc… dopers? [Bank & National Holidays for 12 Countries](http://www.konghyuil.com/index.htm) ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546/24 "2004-12-02T20:06:00Z")
[Official State of Alabama Holidays](http://www.alabama.gov/text/stateemployees/state_holidays.html) New Year’s Day Martin Luther King, Jr./Robert E. Lee’s Birthday George Washington/Thomas Jefferson’s Birthday Mardi Gras Day (also known as Fat Tuesday) Confederate Memorial Day National Memorial Day Jefferson Davis’ Birthday Independence Day July 4 (Observed July 5) Labor Day September 6 Columbus Day/Fraternal Day/American Indian Heritage Day Veteran’s Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day We also typically get the day after Thanksgiving, especially if it’s an election year. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546/25 "2004-12-02T21:16:26Z")
> [@SavageNarce](#): > > I note that Australia has a 4-month “holiday drought” between the Queen’s Birthday in June and Labour Day in October. Canada has a similar 3-month (or so)dry period between New Years and Easter with no intervening holiday. I would like to propose the anniversary of Canada’s Maple Leaf flag (Feb 15th) to be a new national holiday. Call it “Maple Leaf Day” (to avoid confusion with the American “Flag Day”) and make Maple Leaf cookies the official celebratory food. If necessary, we could give up Easter Monday as a Federal holiday, although I don’t see any real problem with just adding one more holiday to the roster. Good idea **SavageNarce**. We certainly don’t like the public holiday “drought” between the Queen’s Birthday in June and Labour Day in October. Although, to be fair, most people within the finance industry also get a holiday on the first Monday in August (Bank Holiday). It’s just that I don’t happen to be one of them. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2004, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546/26 "2004-12-02T22:11:07Z")
I work for a U.S. bank and I don’t get all the bank holidays. New Years Day Memorial Day Independence Day Labor Day Veteran’s Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas However, I do get 25 days per year of combined sick and vacation leave. In six years here I’ve only ever taken a couple days off because I was truly sick. Additionally, we get comp time and since I regularly work 60+ hours/week (and most of the time the hours don’t bother me) it isn’t a big deal for me to take off an extra day here and there. You can only carry five days into the next year. This is the first year I haven’t had to lie and say I took days off that I hadn’t, but that is because I took all of last January off (most of it with last year’s vacation). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/public-bank-holidays/277546.md?page=1)