KOREAN NET

Labor Day's official designation as a public holiday this year means a day off for everyone the first time in 63 years. (Yonhap News)

By Margareth Theresia

May 1's official designation as a public holiday from this year means a day off for the public for the first time in 63 years.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Ministry of Personnel Management on April 6 said the Cabinet approved a bill on the partial amendment to the Act of Public Holidays stipulating Labor Day as a public holiday. Thus everyone including civil servants and teachers get May 1 off.

First designated Worker's Day under the Designation of Workers' Day Act in 1963, Labor Day regained its present name through an amendment to that law in November last year.

Before the revision, Labor Day was a paid holiday for private sector workers but not civil servants and teachers, as the statutory holiday did not apply to them.

"The designation of Labor Day as a public holiday following the restoration of its name holds meaning and symbolism that go beyond just a day off, given its renewal of the social perception of labor's value and dignity," Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young Hoon said. "We will do our best to create a society in which the labor of all workers are respected along with happy workplaces."

margareth@korea.kr