The roads and offices were notably quiet this past week as businesses around the country took full example of an extended weekend due to Heritage Day (21 March) falling on a Tuesday this year.
Despite just coming back from a shortened week, workers can already look forward to a drastically reduced April with three public holidays falling in or around the weekend.
This has been compounded by a greater than usual overlap of public and private school holidays meaning the whole family is likely to find time off during this time period.
With that in mind BusinessTech looked at the remaining public holidays in 2017 and the best days to take off in order to maximise your leave time off.
School Terms
* All 9 Provinces have the same School Calendar in 2017
- Term 1: 11 January – 31 March
- Term 2: 18 April – 30 June
- Term 3: 24 July – 29 September
- Term 4: 9 October – 6 December
Full list of public holidays
| Day | Date | Public Holiday | Comments/Tips | Potential days off |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 01 January | New Years Day | ||
| Monday | 02 January | Public Holiday | ||
| Tuesday | 21 March | Human Rights Day | ||
| Friday | 14 April | Good Friday | By taking leave on 13 April (Thursday) and 18 April (Tuesday). | 6 |
| Monday | 17 April | Family Day | By taking leave on 13 April (Thursday) and 18 April (Tuesday). | 6 |
| Thursday | 27 April | Freedom Day | By taking leave on 26 April (Wednesday), 28 April (Friday), and 2 May (Tuesday). | 7 |
| Monday | 01 May | Workers Day | By taking leave on 26 April (Wednesday), 28 April (Friday), and 2 May (Tuesday). | 7 |
| Friday | 16 June | Youth Day | By Taking Monday/Thursday (15 June/19 June) as a long weekend. | 4 |
| Wednesday | 09 August | National Women’s Day | By taking 7 and 8 August (Monday and Tuesday)/ 10 and 11 August (Thursday and Friday) – or both if your boss is lenient. | 5 |
| Sunday | 24 September | Heritage Day | By taking leave on 26 September (Tuesday) or 22 September (Friday). | 4 |
| Monday | 25 September | Public Holiday | By taking leave on 26 September (Tuesday) or 22 September (Friday). | 4 |
| Saturday | 16 December | Day of Reconciliation | – | |
| Monday | 25 December | Christmas Day | By taking leave on the 27th, 28th, 29th (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday) | 10 |
| Tuesday | 26 December | Day of Good Will | By taking leave on the 27th, 28th, 29th (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday) | 10 |
Read: Why abusing your sick leave is a terrible idea – and what you should do instead
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