Public and private sector holiday dates announced for Eid Al Adha

Majority of employees across the country will benefit from four days of holiday

Ramadan sunrise at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Victor Besa / The National 

Public and private sector workers will have four days of holiday for Eid Al Adha this year, authorities have announced.

Employees across the country will be entitled to have from Saturday, August 10, until Tuesday, August 13, off.

The announcement was made on Thursday morning by the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources.

Eid Al Adha, or Festival of the Sacrifice, is the second of two Islamic holidays celebrated worldwide each year, the other being Eid Al Fitr.

It honours the willingness of the Prophet Ibrahim to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God.

The Muslim festival marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Makkah.

It is celebrated on the 10th day of Du Al Hijjah, the 12th and final month of the Islamic calendar.

Hajj is a five to six day odyssey of discovery and prayer and is part of the Five Pillars of Islam.

The pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia takes place each year.

The meat from the sheep that has been sacrificed for Eid Al Adha is traditionally divided into three parts. The family that own the sheep receive a third while some is distributed to friends and neighbours, with the final third going to the poor and needy.

Earlier this year, it was announced by the UAE cabinet that the private sector would have the same amount of holiday as their government counterparts.

The decree, which unified the holiday days for both the public and private sectors, was issued in March.

Both sets of workers will have a total of 14 days off in 2019.

The standardisation was brought in across both sectors as part of a drive to attract Emiratis towards the private sector.