Holiday Planning

Every new year, I like to check out the calendar, to see, when are the public holidays, when are the school holidays, things like that. Some organisations require their employees to plan their annual leave in advance. They will be given a calendar-like chart, for them to indicate when they are planning to take their leaves. That way the company would be able to plan their resources and to avoid having all the employees taking leaves at the same period of time.

Here's a guide on the public holidays and the days you could plan your leave (For Selangor folks).

1. New Year's Day (1 Jan 2005)
Well that's over already, next!

2. Hari Raya Haji (21 jan 2005) and Thaipusam (25 Jan 2005 - For Selangor, JH,NS,PR,PP Only)
Raya Haji is on a Friday, and Thaipusam's Tuesday of the week after. So for those in working in Selangor, JH,NS,PR,and PP, by taking a day off on 24 Jan 05 (Monday) you will have a long 5 days off.

3. Federal Territory Day (1 Feb 2005 - For KL, Putrajaya, Labuan only)
FT Day is on a Tuesday, by taking Monday off, you will have a long weekend! I am working in Selangor but I am not complaining he he he.

4. Chinese New Year!! (9 & 10 Feb 2005), Awal Muharam (10 Feb 2005)
The CNY falls on the 9 & 10, which is on Wednesday and Thursday. The Awal Muharam also falls on the 10th, which is already a public holiday, so it will be replaced on the 11th, a Friday, no? This is what I plan to do. Take 2 days (Monday & Tuesday) off before CNY and 2 days off (Monday & Tuesday) the week after. So I will have a long, long holiday from 5 Feb 2005 till 15 Feb 2005. :)

5. March - No holiday :( Bad news for parents whose child are schooling. The school holidays are on this month.

6. Maulidur Rasul (21 Apr 2005)
Maulidur Rasul is on a Thursday. Take Friday off, to have a long weekend!

7. Labour Day (1 May 2005) and Wesak Day (22 May 2005)
Both fall on a Sunday, thus the next Monday is a holiday. So you can take either the Friday or Tuesday off, for a long weekend.

8. June & July - No holiday. (except for Birthday of YDP Agong on Saturday 4 June)
These two are going to be very long and slowwww...months.

9. National Day (31 Aug 2005)
It's on a Wednesday. I am not planning any leave here.

10. September - No holiday.
Another long month!

11. Nuzul Al-Quran (21 Oct 2005 - For Selangor, KN,PH,PR,PL,PP,TR Only)
It's on a Friday, so take either the Thursday or the following Monday off for a long weekend. I personally prefer the Monday off. :)

12. Deepavali (1 Nov 2005) & Hari Raya Puasa (3 & 4 Nov 2005)
Deepavali is on Tuesday, Raya holiday is on Thursday and Friday. By taking Monday and Wednesday off, you won't have to work for the whole week!!

13. Christmas Day (25 Dec 2005)
Christmas is on Sunday, so the following Monday is a holiday. I would be taking Tuesday off, then work for 3 days, then another public holiday for the New Year!

So there you go. Oh, I love working in Selangor, the public holiday heaven, with a total of 17 public holidays! So how many days off would you have taken if you follow my guide above? 12 days. So if you have 17 days off like me, you can bring forward the 5 days to next year!

School Holidays (with exception to Christmas, there are no public holidays during the school holidays. So parents have to take their annual leaves if they are planning for a holiday with their children):
March 12 - 20
May 28 - June 12
August 20-28
Nov 12 - Jan 2, 2006

Abbrev.
JH-Johor,NS-Negeri Sembilan,PR-Perak,PP-Pulau Pinang,KN-Kelantan,PH-Pahang,PL-Perlis,TR-Terengganu