Congress Approves New National Holiday | economy

The plenary session of the Congress of the Republic of Peru approved the new declaration without debate in a session held at around 4:00 a.m. on Friday, the last day of this assembly. holiday National (78 votes in favor, 3 votes against and 4 abstentions).

Declares an approved opinion “Peruvian Air Force Day and National holiday Every year on July 23, in commemoration of the heroic sacrifice of Captain FAP Jose Abelardo Quiñones González.”.

He Vacation in Peru That applies to both the public and private sectors, said labor attorney Cesar Bandriano. Therefore, with respect to the private sector, the Opinion amends Law Commission 713, incorporating this new date into the list of wage gaps for workers subject to the labor regime of private activities.

read more: How much should I get paid for working on holidays?

The legislative initiative was already approved by the full house of Congress for the end of 2022, but on that occasion it declared July 23 as a “working holiday”. Then, in January of this year, it was noticed by the executive because it pointed out that this number did not exist, so it asked Congress to specify whether it wanted to declare a holiday (so a day you do not work but get paid) or seek to declare a compensable non-work day.

The alternative text of the opinion, approved by Congress last week, defined that as a vacation and the count of “search” applied to the executive’s observation.

This detail is important because with it, the legislative initiative will no longer go to the hands of the administration – for an oversight or declaration – but will be declared directly into law, pointed out former senior congressional official Jose Cevasco. “The administration had already noticed. Now Congress is acknowledging that it didn’t emphasize its original text, so now it’s going straight to the proclamation,” Chevasco noted.

read more: It’s already law: June 7 will be a holiday in Peru

Will the new holiday come into force from this year?

It should be remembered that Congress this year also ordered the declaration of June 7 as a national holiday, commemorating the Battle of Arica and Flag Day.

But at the insistence of Congress, the law was promulgated after June 7, so the holiday will apply from 2024.

In the new case holiday Since July 23, in honor of Jose Abelardo Quinones, it can no longer be observed by the administrator, it will be implemented before that date, so Chevasco estimates that it will be applicable this year.

“The autograph of the bill will be announced by the Congress President. A month left for the new holiday. Yes, there is time to announce it before July 23,” he noted.

Holidays and their impact

With a new holiday approved by Congress, now total Peru adds 16 holidays to the year (See the full list at the end of this note).

This has caused controversy over its impact on the economy. In a previous note published by Gestión, Carlos Parodi, principal professor of the Department of Economic Studies at the Universidad del Pacífico (UP), explained that the four days during the Easter holidays last April 2023 generated 157 million US dollars. According to Mincetur data, Peru’s daily production on a normal day is, approximately, US$ 671 million (considering the GDP of 2022).

In addition to this impact on GDP, companies report raising labor costs for those who wish to continue their operations, as they must pay their workers double for the day.

“In addition to the impact on GDP, this creates an additional day without work per year. This affects business productivity, especially in micro-enterprises. Let’s not forget that the majority of employers in the country are micro-enterprises,” said Cesar Bandriano, partner at Estudio Muniz.

read more: Confusion between holidays, tourism and GDP cooking in Congress

Next, 16 vacations in Peru:

-New Year (January 1)

Holy Thursday and Good Friday (Moveable)

– Labor Day (May 1)

-Arica War and Flag Day (June 7)

-Saint Peter and Saint Paul (June 29)

Commemoration of the Heroic Sacrifice of Captain FAB Jose Abelardo Quinones (July 23)

-National Holidays (July 28 and 29)

-Battle of June (August 6)

Holy Rose of Lima (August 30)

– Battle of Angamos (October 8)

– All Saints (November 1)

Immaculate Conception (December 8)

-Battle of Ayacucho (December 9)

– Christmas is on December 25)