Manama: Qatar’s public sector employees is set to enjoy an extended Eid holiday of 10 days.
“The holidays in the public sector will start on Thursday, August 16, and will end on Saturday, August 26,” sources told local Arabic daily Al Watan.
The break for the private sector and for financial institutions will be announced within two days, the daily said on Sunday.
Astronomers in several Gulf countries have predicted that Saturday would be the last day of Ramadan this year and that Eid would start on Sunday. The beginning of Ramadan is determined by the sighting of the moon.
The long Eid holiday for the public sector in Qatar and other Gulf Cooperation Council countries has invariably been a subject of much debate given that the private sector gets a markedly shorter break.
Several analysts have called for making holidays uniform to attract more prospective employees to the private sector.
In Oman, employees in the public sector are set to enjoy a nine day-break including the weekend while those in the private sector will only get a six-day break.
