The great day of prayer, which falls on the fourth Friday after Easter, will, according to the Danish government's bill, become a normal working day.
According to the government, the reason for the abolition is increased spending on defence.
- Everyone must contribute, everyone must work a little more, said Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (S) at a press conference in December when the bill was presented.
On the big day of prayer, the Danes gather to eat "varme hveder", a kind of wheat bun with cardamom.
Thousands are protesting
On Sunday afternoon, thousands of Danes from all over the country gathered in central Copenhagen to protest the decision, which means that Danes will work one more day a year without higher pay.
Denmark's largest trade union FH, which organized the demonstration, estimates that at least 50,000 took part.
- The message is clear: Remove the proposal.
Call for negotiations and we can solve the whole thing together instead, says Lizette Risgaard, president of FH to DR.
"Attack against the Danish model"
Therese Holgersen works as a social and health care assistant and is one of those participating in the demonstration.
In a speech, she says that the Danes have put up with too much for far too long.
- Too often I see my colleagues suffer from stress, burnout and fatigue in caregivers due to a stressful day, she says according to DR.
- That is why I am here today, to demand my right and that of my colleagues: the right to be human, to take time to recover, to recharge and to be able to pay our bills.
The right to take time off.
Henrik Stilling, chairman of the trade union Dansk Metal in Copenhagen, tells TV2 that the people's reaction to what they perceive to be an attack on the Danish model should be taken seriously by the politicians.
- We experience it as an abuse, he says to the TV channel.