It was decided with the agreement of all employees and by the Board that from this month onward i.e., August 2023 onward – every ‘Second Saturday’ would be a holiday for the company. But why a second Saturday is a holiday?
Many people speculated many reasons for declaring second Saturday to be a holiday. I am presenting the gist of their arguments along with my cryptic comments below:
- The book of Genesis in the Bible: “The Seventh Day was the day for rest and worship after the six days it took God to create the world”. So, the God rested on Saturday. Hence second Saturday is a holiday!
If this argument is to be given as a reason for declaring second Saturday a holiday, then every Saturday should be a holiday, not just second Saturday!
- It is also said that planet Saturn, from which the day’s name is derived is the second largest planet. Hence second Saturday is a holiday.
This reason has convinced me as strongly as it convinced you!!
- Following the Jewish Tradition, Saturday is the day of Sabbath. Hence it is the day of rest.
Come on! Why only second Saturday of every month is considered as the day of Sabbath? Every Saturday is the day of Sabbath.
- All workers work 6 days a week. They do not get rest on any other day except Sunday. If we were to see the 2nd Saturday falls somewhere in the midway of the month, this day is declared holiday. This will enable people to take two-day break and this may enable them to attend to their personal works.
- In the Philippine, Second Saturday is an occasion to remember and honor the sacrifices of the country’s workers who fought for better wages & working conditions.
- Some people consider that the practice of second Saturday holiday was introduced to improve work-life balance for employees and to provide the much-needed break from their regular work schedule!
- People also justify second Saturday holiday for the following reasons:
- Encouraging Tourism
- Improving Productivity
- Supporting Family time
- To improve quality of life
Thus, we do not find any convincing reason even on the internet which could explain the rationale behind declaring second Saturday as holiday.
About the Author
Dr. K. Raja Gopal Reddy is a seasoned internationally qualified Insurance professional.
What you are reading here, may not answer all the questions we have, but has the absolute power of asking unsettling questions which increase the interest in the strange world, and show the contradictory wonders lying just below the surface of the commonest things of life. Look at this disturbing but beautiful thought of Friedrich Nietzsche “God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him”.
Dr. Reddy can be reached at: raja66gopal@gmail.com
