A young Aussie has been praised after offering a solution on how to solve the massive debate around Australia Day.
West Australian Ronan Fitzgerald, 21, gave his thoughts on Tuesday as debate raged over whether or not the public holiday should be moved from January 26.
‘Not to get too political, but I reckon we can solve the Australia Day debate,’ Mr Fitzgerald said in a TikTok video.
‘By just having a public holiday every Monday, we can celebrate the country with a long weekend, every single week.’
Social media users were overwhelmingly in support of the solution and called for a standard four-day work week in Australia.
‘Great idea,’ one said.
‘But, Tuesday is an awful day to start, so we have to do Wednesday… oh no…’ another joked.
‘He’s got my vote,’ another said.
One suggested the best way to negotiate the Australia Day debate would be to separate two dates over two days.
‘Have the actual date as a national day of mourning and designate a separate day for celebrating what the nation is today,’ she suggested.
It comes after the heated debate leading up to the Australia Day long weekend.
Many Aussies have backed a proposal to move Australia Day to another date and use the day to not only celebrate the country, but also acknowledge the mistreatment of First Nations people.
Former Bachelor star and proud Wiradjuri woman Kiki Morris in the lead-up to the day, told the ABC she would be supportive of an Australia Day on another date.
Many consider the date, the day Captain Arthur Phillip raised the Union Jack in Port Jackson, as the beginning of the colonial suffering of Indigenous people.
For them, the date is regarded as ‘Invasion Day’ or the ‘Day of Mourning’.
‘I think that Australia is such a wonderful country and it’s offered a safe space for so many people to live and bring up their families,’ Ms Morris said.
Western Australian bloke Ronan Fitzgerald reckoned year-round public holidays were the answer to the Australia Day debate
‘For those people, we deserve to celebrate what Australia means to all of us, but definitely, the date needs to be changed.
‘We need to be sensitive to our ancestors and our history as well.’
Some social media users supported Mr Fitzgerald’s solution simply because they wanted a four-day work week.
Many suggested they would support the Greens in upcoming elections due to previous support from party members for the four-day work week.
Federal Greens senator Barbara Pocock has been a big supporter of work-life balance measures in her role as chair of the Senate Select Work and Care Committee.
On Wednesday, major marketing agency Claxon announced they would implement a permanent four-day work week, effective immediately
The move comes after a three-month trial last year which saw the agency condense its 38-hour week into four days.
The whole team will take Fridays off, at no cost to their hours or salaries.
‘This isn’t just about improving culture; it’s about enhancing productivity and performance,’ Claxon’s CEO Daniel Willis said.
