National Holiday of 28 October: Czechoslovak Independence Day

On the 28^th October, the Czech Republic celebrates a public holiday commemorating the establishment of an independent Czechoslovak state in 1918. It is an important date as it reminds us that we established our own country after the collapse of Austria-Hungary.

All shops with a floor area of more than 200 square metres will be closed on the holiday of the 28^th October. If you are planning to do some shopping, we recommend that you do it in advance or pick another day.

Information for employees

• I do not work on a public holiday: Your pay is not reduced as you get a monthly salary which does not depend on the number of days worked.
• I work on a public holiday:
  • I get compensatory leave for the time worked. Compensatory leave must be provided until the end of the third month following the public holiday or on a date agreed with the employee. There is no reduction in pay for taking compensatory leave.
  • I can ask my employer for extra pay instead of compensatory leave (equal to 100 percent of the average hourly pay).
• Taking compensatory leave is given priority over getting extra pay.
• Ordered work on a public holiday: The employer may order the employee to work on a public holiday only in exceptional situations as defined by the Labour Code.

 

More about the history and the public holiday

The New Czechoslovak state comprised the territories of Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia (especially its south-eastern part known as Czech Silesia), Slovakia and Subcarpathian Ruthenia (formerly called Upper Hungary). Before the declaration of independence, the Czech nationality went through a long period of struggling to strengthen its identity within the monarchy. This process accelerated during the First World War, when the existing arrangement proved unsustainable.

The key figures who contributed to the creation of the new state were Tomáš G. Masaryk, M. R. Štefánik and Edvard Beneš. They established the provisional Czechoslovak government in Paris and negotiated the recognition of independence from the Allies

Tomáš G. Masaryk was appointed the first President and Karel Kramář the first Prime Minister. The Czechoslovak Republic existed in various forms until 1989, with the exception of the war years, when the name Czecho-Slovak Republic was used. After the Second World War, the territory consisted of Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia and Slovakia, but without Carpathian Rus. In 1993, it was further divided into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.