"A common misconception is that, as New Year's Day falls on a Sunday this year, the public holiday automatically carries over to the following day.

This is definitely not the case, " said the Department, which, as well as enforcing workers' rights, is also charged with ensuring the Irish workforce remains competitive. "Sunday 1 January is in fact the public holiday."

However, displaying some grasp of the spirit of the season, the Department said that "employers may decide at their own discretion to close on Monday 2 January as one of the entitlement options for public holidays is a paid day off within a month of the public holiday."

Other options for workers include a paid day off on the public holiday itself, which is the most popular option; an additional day of paid annual leave; or an additional day's pay. But the Department pointed out that it is the employer who decides between the various options, not the employee.

Whatever about private sector workers, the Department has decided to exercise its 'discretion' with regard to its own staff who, along with all other civil servants, will not have to be back behind their desks until this Tuesday.

The same applied last Tuesday, 27 December, when every Government department was shut after Christmas Day fell on the previous Sunday. St Stephen's Day, 26 December, which is also a public holiday, fell on a Monday and was not an issue.

The vast majority of the country's 30,000 civil servants also availed of their additional 'privilege day'. In line with most other departments, Enterprise did not re-open last week until Thursday, 29 December. Privilege days were agreed back in the 1930s and were originally designed to give civil servants enough time to return from rural areas after the holidays. The two privilege days . . . one at Christmas and one at Easter . . . have since been formally agreed and are additional to annual leave entitlements.

New Year's Day is a public holiday in every western country except Denmark. Further afield, China also has a public holiday on 1 January even though it subsequently celebrates the Chinese New Year over three days from 22 to 24 January. Japan also has a public holiday on 1 January for the New Year, or Ganjitsu, as do North and South Korea.

But workers in India, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and Bangladesh will work through the New Year while in Bhutan, workers will have to wait for a day off until next Tuesday (3 January) to celebrate winter solstice, or Nyinlog.