Wednesday, February 11th, 2009
Change in 2009 Deepavali Public Holiday Date
The Ministry of Manpower in Singapore has announced that the 2009 Deepavali Public Holiday Date will fall on 17 October 2009 (Saturday) instead of 16 November 2009 (Monday). For some, this means one less public holiday for the year.
Since actual Deepavali will fall on 17 October 2009 (Saturday) as advised by the Hindu Endowments Board (HEB), this means employees on a 5-day work week, who are not covered by the Employment Act in Singapore, may not be compensated with 1 day off-in-lieu (or be given 1 extra day’s pay) according to the rules on off-in-lieu.
This is unlike the case of the cancelled Deepavali date of 15 November 2009 that falls on a Sunday (which makes the following Monday an official public holiday for all).
The change in date was attributed to the uncommon appearance of 2 “no moon” days (amavasai) between mid-Oct and mid-Nov 2009.
The previous date (15 Nov) was established on the 2nd “no moon” day. The Almanac has now confirmed that Deepavali will be on the 1st “no moon” day which is 17 October 2009.
Amended Singapore Public Holidays 2009.
To view or download the Singapore Holidays Calendar (2010), visit Singapore Public Holidays & School Holidays.
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- Posted in News & Events
- Tags: deepavali, public holidays
3 Responses to Change in 2009 Deepavali Public Holiday Date
Ivory Phang
February 14th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Why it can’t be compensated like any other holidays that fall on Saturday and we are compensated with an extra holiday any time in the year?
Patrick
February 14th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Hi Ivory, it’s meant for employees on a 5-day work week, who are not covered by the Employment Act. Some companies do not compensate this group of people with an extra day off.
If you have been compensated for public holidays that fall on a Saturday, then you should be receiving the same for this coming Deepavali.
Additionally, I have updated the post with relevant links that may help to clarify this issue in detail.
Yuyu
October 9th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
WUT! Darn it. And I was just expecting some break from my stupid industrial attachment. What a drag.