Weeklong holidays needed to refresh workers

A tourist jumps as sun sets in the background in Qingdao, Shandong province, August 10, 2015. [Photo/IC]

A recent State Council document says employers can "arrange working hours for employees according to their actual conditions so that some of them (employees) could rest on Friday afternoons and make short trips during longer ... weekends".

Many media outlets have interpreted this as "the State encouraging a two-and-half-day weekend" for employees and, taking this to be true, some analysts have predicted a boost in local tourism.

Such an interpretation is more like speculation. The fact is, the State Council document is not binding on employers and gives no hint that the authorities intend to make an extended weekend mandatory. It is up to the employers to decide whether or not they will give their employees an additional half-day off. A closer look at the State Council document shows it is a recommendation; it doesn't say whether the half-day leave should be additional either.

However, a two-and-half-day weekend could become a reality for some employees, which has the potential of changing the nature of the existing national holiday system. If that were to happen, it would be a shot in the arm for the tourism sector, because an additional half-day leave can encourage many people who have the resources to travel.

Despite all this, it is absurd to expect the two-and-half-day weekend to really boost the domestic tourism industry, because it will only lead to more short trips, not long holiday breaks. Considering the vast country that is China, two-and-half days are not enough for long-distance travel, they can only allow people to go on short trips, provided they are lucky enough to get the additional half-day off.

Those making short trips spend a lot less money, because a majority of them do not need to check into hotels. More importantly, since people don't treat short trips as formal leisure travel, they won't draw up a huge budgets.

What boosts tourism most is long-distance travel, for which people must book air or train tickets and hotels, and make other preparations in advance. And for long-distance travels, people need at least five to seven days.

Although there are two weeklong public holidays on our calendar, an official survey last year showed that just more than 50 percent of the working people get to enjoy paid leave. This means, even though the Labor Law guarantees paid leave to all employees, it could still be confined to paper.

If the controversy over extending weeklong public holidays continues, the government should consider enacting special laws to protect workers' right to get paid leave, so that they can get a real break from work every two or three months. This is important because such breaks will not only boost tourism but also re-energize the workers.

The author is deputy secretary-general of the Beijing Tourism Association.