Korean Job Discussion Forums

[lhasa]

it's constitution day. my hagwon says it used to be a school holiday but not anymore.

anyone know for sure ??

[Goon-Yang]

Yep. If it's red it's a holiday. It's not a holiday. I don't think it has been for 2 or 3 years.

[Otherside]

Ditto, no longer a Public holiday.

[Robot_Teacher]

Darn, that's too bad that they weren't going to allow a 3 day weekend in the middle of Summer. I get the gist that the government rigged the holidays for people to do nothing, but work all the time. Holiday or not, the mechanics and truck drivers are working 7 days a week and lucky if they get off early on Sunday. Many guys live to work and drink and nothing else. It's bang clang clang in these little auto and tractor repair shops every Sunday and holiday such as Childrens day with a small sweatshop nearby running each and every day. Never a quiet peaceful day at home.

I think it's only right to have holidays and not rig the calendar for them to fall on the weekend. Sometimes, holidays can inadvertently fall on the weekend, but most countries will allow a Friday or Monday off to compensate. People need time with family, BBQ, camping, fishing, and tripping for life to really mean anything. While it's necessary to work and have the occasional drink, I think workoholic/alcoholics are the most dull meaningless people.

[BigBuds]

[polonius]

[Robot_Teacher]

You didn't know that most of the holidays were forced onto Saturday and Sundays with other holidays being eliminated? But with Childrens Day on a Tuesday, one that didn't get changed, people really took advantage of that to make it a 4 or 5 day weekend as they knew it's the only other long weekend other than Chuseok in October. I've researched this and it's confirmed to be true. The country wants the people to work as to add value to the country for the good of the country. That's all it is.

As a hagwon owner and long time veteran in Korea, I know you're defensive about Korea to get it's work done and make lots of money, but Korea is changing away from what we had hoped it would be. That leaves a lot to be said.

[BigBuds]

[TheUrbanMyth]

[blackjack]

plus korean holidays run off two calendars. The lunar and the Julian, which is why some holidays can fall on the same date some years and not others

[Robot_Teacher]

OK, holidays are fixed and I can't cite my statement that they're manipulated to offer fewer work days off, but it's apparent they mostly fall on weekends and Sunday is considered a weekly holiday so Korea can boast it offers the most holidays of any country in the world. Look at Constitution day being removed to demonstrate a move to fewer holidays. I find it hard to believe that most holidays would naturally fall on weekends by accident, but they do and then no Friday or Monday given off in lieu of them. At home, if the Memorial Day or other holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, then a Friday or Monday is given in lieu of the lost paid time off. I found something where a political party tried to get a bill passed to do this in Korea last December, but it was thrown on the back burner and nothing more said.

Only 3 days for Chuseok, the most important holiday to Koreans, which also falls on a weekend? Other than Chuseok on October 2nd, a Friday, Christmas is the next holiday on a weekday which is also a Friday. I guess this best meets the needs of a workaholic country as I'm seeing people work 7 days a week all around me who even worked Childrens Day making for no single early morning and day a quiet day. Not even Sunday morning is quiet as it's, "bang clang clang knock kock rattle ringle rolle and engines roaring with smokey breezes from trash fires and diesel engines in close vicinity." I'm getting angry about all the noise and smoke, sometimes as late as 11:30 at night and then people can't quiet down before 2AM with all this loud stomping and chomping. So much anxious tension in Korean living. I'm like thinking, "chill and take some damned time off or take your work elsewhere." I don't like Korea so I'm not staying any longer than necessary. I was hoping for peace, quiet, fresh air, and friendly folks by going small town, but all I got was 7 day a week noise, smoke, and people cold as ice as well as the many inconveniences of lacking infrastructure. Heck, one of my schools is still running P1's at dial up speed with the cows mooing outside in deplorable ugly stinky conditions. Ugliest sorriest farm I've ever seen. Koreans could do much much better in all aspects of living for themselves, but fail to speak up and take actions out of saving face.

Good thing I have 5 weeks contracted vacation to get out as one Korean company man I know only gets 5 days a year off, a Saturday through Wednesday break in August with Saturday work every other weekend.

[kiknkorea]

[polonius]

[ontheway]

Robot teacher has this all figured out.

This year one of may favorite holidays, the March 1st holiday, fell on Sunday. See, they put it on the weekend. It's really a devious attempt to make us all work harder. It should be during the week so we could have a day off. But, NO! There it is, right between February 28 and March 2, on Sunday which is already a day off. They were really clever to hide this conspiracy between two other regular days. They've been plannning this holday conspiracy for hundreds of years so we'd all have to work harder in 2009. The fiends.

[kiknkorea]