In Ukraine, there are plans to restore weekends on public holidays

In Ukraine, official weekends on public holidays that were canceled after the introduction of martial law may be restored. A relevant bill has already been registered in the Verkhovna Rada, and simultaneously, a petition has been submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers calling for the return of non-working public holidays. This is reported by Judicial and Legal Newspaper.

Weekends on public holidays may be restored

In parliament, Bill No. 14403 titled 'On Amendments to Some Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding the Restoration of the Norm on the Special Features of Setting and Accounting for Working and Rest Time on Holidays and Non-Working Days' has been registered.

The document proposes to restore the rules that were in effect before the introduction of martial law. If adopted, workers will again receive additional days off on the public holidays specified by law.

Currently, during martial law, the provisions of the Labor Code regarding public holidays and non-working days are temporarily not applied. That is why public holidays are not automatically days off for most employees.

Why it is proposed to restore holiday weekends

Alongside the legislative initiative, a petition has been submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers, calling for the return of official days off for the psychological recovery of citizens.

The petition states that Ukrainians have been living in conditions of full-scale war, regular air attacks, chronic stress, and sleep deprivation for more than four years. Despite this, millions of people continue to work, support the economy, pay taxes, and assist the Defense Forces.

Petition authors believe that additional days of rest could partially compensate for the constant psychological burden and contribute to the recovery of the population's working capacity.

When can holiday weekends be restored

So far, the bill has only been registered in the Verkhovna Rada and has not yet come into force. In order for the new rules to take effect, the document must go through consideration in parliament, gain support from members of parliament, and be signed by the President of Ukraine.

Until the appropriate changes are adopted, the order of work on public holidays remains the same as it is now, according to the norms of legislation that apply during martial law.