Migration has always been a source of rich cultural diversity for Australia. We’re a country with a long history as a ‘melting pot’ of various nationalities, even though – as recent census figures show – migrant’s countries of origin are shifting.

In the years after the Second World War the surge in migrants to Australia came mostly from England, Greece and Italy. In the 1970s many New Zealanders chose to make Australia home. More recently, we are seeing growing numbers of Indians and Asians moving here permanently, although the Chinese in particular are not new to our shores. Many Chinese Australians can trace their ancestry back to the Gold Rushes of the late 1800s.

Under the influence of our Chinese-Australian poulation the Chinese New Year has become something of a feature on our annual calendar. Also known as the Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, this is a significant celebration for Chinese people, occurring each year, at the beginning of February. Families come together and mark the start of the Chinese New Year with festivities that can last several days. The symbol of the year (2015 is the year of the sheep) will often shape the theme of activities. Other features of the occasion include: fresh flowers, writings that refer to good luck (these are usually written by brush on a diamond-shaped piece of red paper). Tangerines and oranges are common too – these symbolize luck and wealth. And there are also little red packets – envelopes containing a small amount of money – called Hong Bao, Ang Pao, or Lai See which convey happiness, success and good fortune. These are given as presents to children, and other family members too, but some employers also give them to their employees as a gesture of good will.

Chinese New Year is not a nationwide public holiday in Australia. However, some Chinese businesses do close or amend their business hours. And Australian employers should not be surprised if Chinese employees want to take time off during this period. After all, this is an important family-oriented time for the Chinese people. At the very least, especially given the large numbers of Chinese immigrants now in Australia, our commercial sector should have the cultural awareness to understand and respect this holiday.

Without such cultural awareness, we cannot fully embrace our migrant population and all of the cultural diversity it has to offer.