Bank Holiday 编辑词条 发表评论(0)

英国传统的星期一银行假日

银行假日 British Bank Holidays

　Bank holiday，银行假日。英国指法定假日,美国指星期六、日以外的政府命令的假日。 　　由来 　　其实，所谓的Bank Holiday也是英国的法定假日，光从名字上就可以看出是银行停止营业的日子。对于英国这样的老牌资本主义国家来说，如果银行停业，当然就意味着所有商业活动也都会停止，人们也就可以不用上班工作。据说，Bank Holiday是由一个名叫约翰·卢布克（John Lubbock）的英国爵士提议的，至于提出这个建议的原因倒是跟英国的板球运动颇有渊源。在当年板球盛行的年代，有许多城际间的板球比赛并不是在休息日举行的，这就让那些在银行里工作的板球迷们叫苦不迭。按照当时的规定，银行职员在非休息日的时候是不可以请假的，所以很多银行职员对此极为不满。正巧，约翰爵士也是板球运动的超级Fans，当他得知银行职员的苦衷之后，马上向国会递交了申请并得到了通过，从那时开始，Bank Holiday便走进了英国人的生活当中。 　　Bank Holiday在英国 　　英国这个国家和欧洲的其他国家相比, 是公众假日比较少的国家 (和中国更是没得比了). 这个公众假日就是那些除了周末外其他的假日,比如什么圣诞节之类的. 仅有的那些里面包括了Bank Holidays, Holidays by Royal Proclamation和"Common Law Holidays". 后面的两个, Holidays by Royal Proclamation, 皇室宣布假日,是和皇家有关的, 估计应该是像什么女王/国王生日, 登基之日什么的, 没有一个固定的日期. "Common Law Holidays", "习惯法假日"指的是圣诞节和复活节星期五 (耶稣受难日) 那两天, 虽然不是法定的假日, 但是大家通常习惯性的放自己一天假. (真是好习惯.) 　　接下来要说的是重头戏,Bank Holiday. 所谓Bank Holiday, 银行假日,顾名思义, 即是银行放假不营业的日子. 甚至, 现在已经是银行在这些日子里面不准营业 (不是不愿, 而是你愿都不准, 不过估计也没谁愿了). 这些日子是法定的公众假日, 自1871年被承认, 是由政府公布的确定的日期. 之所以命名为Bank Holidays, 是因为在这些日子里, 银行要关门, 因而没有任何商业活动. (英国之所以成为第一个资本主义国家不是没有原因的). 如果遇到某个Bank Holiday正好是周末的时候, 那就在另外一周 (一般是接下来的一周) 里选一天补成Bank Holiday. (假日的数目是绝对不可以少滴!) 　　有意思的一件事情是, 在英国的四个地方, 英格兰, 苏格兰, 威尔士和北爱尔兰, 各自的银行假日不是全一样的. 1871年颁布Bank Holidays Act (银行假日法令) 的时候, 就规定了英格兰, 威尔士和北爱尔兰有四个Bank Holidays, 但是苏格兰却有五个. England, Wales和Northern Ireland的四个是: Easter Monday, 复活节星期一, 耶稣复活日, 复活节星期五之后紧接着的星期一. The first Monday in August, 8月的第一个星期一. Boxing Day, 12月26号. Whit Monday, 5月11号到6月14号之间的任意一个星期一. Scotland的五个是: New year's Day, 新年. Good Friday, 复活节星期五. The first Monday in May, 5月的第一个星期一. First Monday in August, 8月的第一个星期一. Christmas Day, 圣诞节. 看起来苏格兰比别的地方多了一个Bank Holiday, 但其实那里是少了一个假日的, 因为有两个Bank holiday其实在别的地方是"Common Law Holidays", 而苏格兰本来又没有"Common Law Holidays", 所以苏格兰就只有五个假日, 而其他地方就有2+4=6个假日. (所以苏格兰人很不满意). 　　1903年, St. Patrick's Day, 3月17号成为了爱尔兰的一个Bank Holiday. (这个St Patrick's Day其实可以相当于是爱尔兰的国庆日, 英格兰, 苏格兰, 威尔士和爱尔兰各有一个圣徒, 所以也就各有一天是他们的纪念日, 相当于各自的国庆日. 威尔士的St. David's Day, 3月1号; 爱尔兰的St. Patrick's Day, 3月17号; 英格兰的St. George's Day, 4月23号; 苏格兰的St. Andrew's Day, 11月30号.) 到了1971年, Bank Holidays有了一个大改动. 在England, Wales和Northern Ireland, Whit Monday被替换成了Spring Holiday, 日期被固定在5月的最后一个星期一. 同时, 8月的第一个星期一的Bank Holiday被替换成了8月的最后一个星期一. 1973年, 不满意的苏格兰人把每年的1月2号变成为了苏格兰的一个Bank Holiday, 这下子大家的假日就一样多了. 过了一年, 1974年, England, Wales和Northern Ireland把新年加入他们的Bank Holidays' list里, Scotland立即还以颜色, 把Boxing Day加入到他们的Bank Holiday's list里. 到了1978年, England, Wales和Northern Ireland又做小动作, 把每个五月份的第一个星期一增加为Bank Holiday (抄了苏格兰的), Scotland不甘示弱的把每个五月的最后一个星期一算做Spring Holiday, 也增加为Bank Holiday. 　　到如今, 英格兰, 威尔士和苏格兰每年都有8个公众假日, 但是北爱尔兰就有10个. England和Wales完全相同, Northern Ireland多了个St. Patrick's Day, 还有每年的7月12号纪念the Battle of the Boyne (博因河之战, 爱尔兰历史上最著名的战争, 信新教的William III战胜了信天主教的James II). 苏格兰区别比较大, 在那里, 1月2号是Bank Holiday, 但是Easter Monday就不是; 每个8月的第一个星期一是Bank Holiday, 但是最后一个星期一就不是。

其他资料!

在英格兰，Bank Holidays指的是：New Year's Day, Easter Monday, May Day (not necessarily 1 May, it is the 2nd of May), Spring and Late Summer Holidays at the end of May and August respectively, and Boxing Day. There are also two common law holidays on Good Friday and Christmas Day. 同时，30th of April 是叫做Spring Bank

而在苏格兰，是：New Year's Day, January 2, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day (not necessarily 1 May), Spring and Summer Holidays at the end of May and the beginning of August respectively, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

在北爱尔兰则是：New Year's Day, St. Patrick's Day (17 March), Easter Monday, May Day (not necessarily 1 May), Spring and Late Summer Holidays at the end of May and August respectively, and Boxing Day. There are also two common law holidays on Good Friday and Christmas Day and a public holiday on the anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne (12 July).

自1871年起，英国便有银行假日了。“银行假日”这个名称起源于银行关闭以至所有交易暂停的时期。如今，尽管银行在这些日子里仍然关门，但是很多商店还是照常营业的。

按传统，在银行假日，许多商家都停业，以便员工们可以休假。在这期间，人们通常是与家人共度时光，小憩或者短途旅游。在银行假日工作的人，一般会得到额外的报酬——“原工资一倍半”或甚至“双工资”，这是工会为他们争取来的。

英格兰和威尔士有6个银行假日：新年、复活节星期一、劳动节(不一定是5月1日)、春假和晚夏假(分别在5月底和8月底)以及节礼日。另外有两个普通法假日：耶稣受难节和圣诞节。

苏格兰有9个公共假日：新年、1月2日节、耶稣受难节、复活节星期一、劳动节(不一定是5月1日)、春假和夏假(分别在5月底和8月初)、圣诞节和节礼日。

北爱尔兰有7个银行假日：新年、圣帕特里克节(3月17日)、复活节星期一、劳动节(不一定是5月1日)、春假和晚夏假(分别在5月底和8月底)以及节礼日。另外有两个普通法假日：耶稣受难节和圣诞节，还有庆祝博因战役周年的公共假日(7月12日)。

如果银行假日恰好是周末会怎么样呢？

如果公共假日恰好是周末，有别的假日可以替代。商店、博物馆以及其他公共景点，如历史名宅和体育中心，在某些公共假日会关门，尤其是圣诞节。

Bank holiday
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
This article is about the public holiday in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. For the bank holiday declared in the USA during the Great Depression, see Emergency Banking Act. For bank holidays in India, see bank holidays in India. For bank holidays in United States, see bank holidays in United States.
A bank holiday is a public holiday in both the United Kingdom and Ireland. There is no automatic right to time off on these days, although the majority of the population not employed in essential services (e.g. utilities, fire, ambulance, police, health-care, public transport workers) receive them as holidays; those employed in essential services usually receive extra pay for working on these days. The first official bank holidays were the four days named in the Bank Holidays Act 1871, but today the term is colloquially used for public holidays which are not officially bank holidays, for example Good Friday and Christmas Day. Large supermarkets are usually closed entirely on the Sunday before a Monday Bank Holiday, but open on the Saturday and the Monday itself.

Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Bank Holidays Act 1871
1.2 Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971
2 Current practice
2.1 Royal proclamation
2.2 List of current holidays
3 Bank holidays in Scotland
4 Bank holidays in the Republic of Ireland
5 Campaigns for extra bank holidays
6 Hong Kong
7 See also
8 References
9 External links


[edit] History
[edit] Bank Holidays Act 1871
Prior to 1834, the Bank of England observed about thirty-three saints' days and religious festivals as holidays, but in 1834, this was reduced to just four: 1 May, 1 November, Good Friday, and Christmas Day. In 1871, the first legislation relating to bank holidays was passed when Liberal Politician and Banker, Sir John Lubbock introduced the Bank Holidays Act 1871 which specified the days in the table set out below.[1] Sir John was an enthusiastic supporter of cricket and was firmly of the belief that bank employees should have the opportunity to participate in and attend matches when they were scheduled. Included in the dates of bank holidays are therefore dates when cricket games were traditionally played between the villages in the region where Sir John was raised.[citation needed] The English people were so thankful that they called the first Bank Holidays 'St. Lubbock's Days' for a while.[2] Scotland was treated separately because of its separate traditions; for example, New Year is a more important holiday there.[citation needed]

Bank holidays 1871 England, Wales, Ireland Scotland
Good Friday
Easter Monday
Whit Monday First Monday in May
First Monday in August First Monday in August
Boxing Day/St. Stephen's Day Christmas Day

The act did not specify Good Friday and Christmas Day as bank holidays in England, Wales and Ireland because they were already recognised as common law holidays, and because of common observance, they became customary holidays since before records began.[1]

In 1903, the Bank Holiday (Ireland) Act added 17 March, Saint Patrick's Day, as a bank holiday for Ireland only.[3]

[edit] Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971
This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2010)

Exactly a century after the 1871 Act, the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971, which currently regulates bank holidays in the UK, was passed. The majority of the current bank holidays were specified in the 1971 Act, but New Year's Day and May Day were introduced after 1971.

From 1972 the date of the August bank holiday was changed to the end of the month. Curiously, there were a few years (e.g. 1868) when this holiday fell in September, but this no longer occurs - presumably reflecting a change in the way of defining the relevant day. The Whitsun bank holiday (Whit Monday) was replaced by the Late Spring Bank Holiday - fixed as the last Monday in May - in 1971.

In January 2007, the St Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Act 2007 was given royal assent, making 30 November (or the nearest Monday if a weekend) a bank holiday in Scotland.




[edit] Current practice
[edit] Royal proclamation
Under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971, bank holidays are proclaimed each year by the legal device of a royal proclamation. Royal proclamation is also used to move bank holidays that would otherwise fall on a weekend. In this way, public holidays are not 'lost' in years when they coincide with weekends. These deferred bank holiday days are termed a 'bank holiday in lieu' of the typical anniversary date. In the legislation they are known as 'substitute days'. The movement of the St Andrew's Day Scottish holiday to the nearest Monday when 30 November is a weekend day is statutory and does not require a proclamation.

[edit] List of current holidays
Current bank and public holidays Date Name England and Wales (8) Scotland (9) Northern Ireland (10) Republic of Ireland (9)
1 January New Year's Day Y Y Y Y
2 January 2 January Y
17 March St. Patrick's Day Y Y
The Friday before Easter Sunday Good Friday Y Y Y
The day after Easter Sunday Easter Monday Y Y Y
First Monday in May1 May Day Bank Holiday (or Early May Bank Holiday in Scotland) Y Y Y Y
Last Monday in May2,3 Spring Bank Holiday Y Y Y
First Monday In June June Bank Holiday Y
12 July Battle of the Boyne - Orangemen's Day Y
First Monday in August Summer Bank Holiday Y Y
Last Monday in August Summer Bank Holiday Y Y
Last Monday in October October Bank Holiday Y
30 November St. Andrew's Day Y
25 December Christmas Day Y Y Y Y
26 December Boxing Day, St. Stephen's Day Y Y Y Y

For one year only, 1995, this holiday was moved to the second Monday in May – i.e., from 1 May to 8 May – to commemorate the 50th anniversary of VE Day.
For one year only, 2002, this holiday was moved to 4 June. This caused it to follow an extra bank holiday on 3 June, making a four-day weekend to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.
Again in 2012 this holiday will be moved to 4 June. It will then be followed by an extra holiday on 5 June, making a four-day weekend to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.
[edit] Bank holidays in Scotland
Main article: Bank holidays in Scotland
A number of differences apply to Scotland rather than the rest of the UK. For example, Easter Monday is not a bank holiday. Also, although they share the same name, the Summer Bank Holiday falls on the first Monday of August in Scotland as opposed to the last elsewhere in the UK.

Bank holidays do not, however, assume the same importance in Scotland as they do elsewhere. Whereas they have effectively become public holidays elsewhere in the UK, in Scotland there remains a tradition of public holidays based on local tradition and determined by local authorities (for example, the Glasgow Fair and the Dundee Fortnight). In 1996, Scottish banks made the business decision to harmonise their own holidays with the rest of the UK, therefore bank holidays in Scotland are neither public holidays nor the days on which banks are closed.

[edit] Bank holidays in the Republic of Ireland
Main article: Public holidays in the Republic of Ireland
In the Republic of Ireland, the term "public holiday" is used officially, though "bank holiday" is used colloquially.

Good Friday is not a public holiday, though banks and public institutions are closed. The Summer Bank Holiday is also the first Monday in August rather than the last. A June Bank Holiday takes the place of the Spring Bank Holiday. Easter Monday and St Patrick's Day both qualify as National Days in the Republic.

The most recent public holiday to be added was May Day (sometimes wrongly called Labour Day). This holiday is taken as the first Monday in May, and was introduced in 1994. Recently, senior politicians (including Ruairi Quinn TD) have been considering the addition of one or two extra public holidays to bring Ireland in line with the rest of Europe.

[edit] Campaigns for extra bank holidays
It has been noted[by whom?] that the number of holidays in the UK is relatively small compared to the number in many other European countries. However, direct comparison is inaccurate since the 'substitute day' scheme of deferment does not apply in most European countries, where holidays that coincide with a weekend (29% of fixed-date holidays) are 'lost'. In fact, the average number of non-weekend holidays in such countries is only marginally higher (and in some cases lower) than the UK.

There have been calls for an increase in the number of bank holidays.[4] Among the most notably absent dates from the existing list are the feast days of patron saints; 23 April (St George's Day) in England and 1 March (St David's Day) in Wales are not currently recognised. 17 March (St Patrick's Day) is a public holiday in Northern Ireland and, from 2008, 30 November (St Andrew's Day) is a bank holiday in Scotland. St Piran's Day (patron saint of Cornwall) on the 5 March is already given as an unofficial day off to many government and other workers in the county, and there are renewed calls for the government to recognise this as an official bank holiday in the region.[5][6]

The Government as of 2008 has stated "we have no plans to change the current pattern of Bank Holidays, but we are nevertheless considering all these suggestions carefully".[7] In response to a parliamentary question about St George's Day, Gordon Brown stated that it is "for public debate" whether it should become a holiday.[citation needed] If it did, it would be eight days before the May holiday in some years, and very close to Easter in others.

[edit] Hong Kong
In Hong Kong the term bank holiday is used colloquially to refer to public holidays, since banks are normally closed on these days. Hong Kong has maintained a distinction between public holidays and statutory holidays, the number of days for the latter is fewer.