Holiday Dilemma: Can We Offer Alternate Days Off When Holidays Fall on Sundays?

Hi,

We are in the process of preparing the holiday list for the year 2016. There are 3 working days when holidays fall on Sunday. I need to know if we can give an alternate day off as per policy. For example, 1st May Labour Day and 2nd Oct fall on Sunday.

If an unusual national holiday falls on Sunday, you have to provide an alternative holiday which was published by the government in its Gazette. There should be a minimum of 9 days of national holidays and festival holidays declared every year by every establishment.

If May 1st falls on a Sunday, you don't need to show that in Form V. Show a different holiday instead of this May Day.

Dear Stephen,

Please clarify the 9 National Holidays. I think there are only 4. Holidays that fall on a Sunday or during the weekly off should be discussed and mutually agreed upon by the management and employees.

You have to mention in the circular that since these days coincide with the weekly off/Sunday, alternate offs should be given this year for clarity. Otherwise, employees will inquire about it next year, leading to an extra financial burden on the management. This is also considered a bad practice.

Regards

Dear Priyanka, There are only four notified National Holidays. For better practice, with management approval, you can fix a number of Holidays (National + Festival). If any National or Festival Holiday falls on a Sunday, you can include another Holiday in the list. By doing so, there will be a fixed number of Holidays every year, and the company will have an equal financial burden.

Our company is providing ten Holidays in a year (being a 5-day working week). If you have a 6-day working week, you can increase the number with management approval. By doing so, the employees will never be in an unrest situation. They will be well-prepared to have a fixed number of Holidays in a year.

Regards

Please refer to the judgment of The Tata Oil Mills Co. Ltd vs K.V. Gopalan And Ors on April 15, 1965, by the Supreme Court of India. It states that the total number of paid holidays should not be less than the total numbers specified in the act. In the TN NHFH Act, it should not be less than 9. If a national holiday falls on a weekly off, you are supposed to pay extra pay excluding the weekly off wage.

To ensure that the total number of holidays complies with the provisions of the said act, companies are practicing providing alternate days as holidays in Form V.