By Cassidy Crawford, Staff Writer
With March comes St. Patrick’s Day and all things green. While many enjoy the shamrocks and golden coins that come with this cultural holiday, they do not get to enjoy this day as a federally recognized holiday. [1] The current list of federal holidays in the United States is as follows: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.[2] What these holidays mean for you in terms of a permissible absence from work differs depending on your status as a federal, state, or private employee.
In order to become a federal holiday, the day in question must be proposed and recognized by Congress.[3] This power was given to Congress in Title V of the U.S. Code 6103- Holidays.[4] To be recognized, the holiday must be approved by both chambers of Congress and signed by the president.[5] On federally recognized holidays, non-essential federal government offices are closed for business and their employees are not required to work. These employees are entitled to paid holiday time off on these designated holidays and if a federal employee is required to work, they are entitled to holiday premium pay. [6] The United States Code also lays out situations in which federal employees are not entitled to paid holiday time off, which includes employees with an intermittent work schedule, employees who receive annual premium pay for standby duty, and firefighters who are covered by the special pay provisions of the U.S.C.[7] The federal government also recognized “in lieu of” holidays for full-time employees when a holiday falls on an employee’s time off.[8] Similarly, if a holiday falls on a Saturday, federal employees receive a holiday credit.[9] However, if the holiday falls on Sunday, the holiday will be observed on the immediately following Monday.[10]
While federal employees enjoy the benefits of federally recognized holidays, state and private employees are not afforded these same benefits.[11] States, counties, and cities set their own holidays for their employees and while these often coincide with federal holidays, this is not always the case.[12] For example, the state recognized holidays in Pennsylvania are New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, the Day after Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day.[13]The Executive Board of the State of Pennsylvania is responsible for determining these holidays and which days the state administrative offices will be closed.[14] While the state holidays and time off may look similar to the federal holidays, private employers are not required to close on any of the listed holidays on the federal or state level.[15] This means that private employers do not need to allow paid or unpaid time off on holidays for employees or pay any premium wage rates for work done on holidays, and private employers may only be required to uphold certain policies or practices that they have previously enacted in regards to holiday procedures.
Between 1885 and 2019, there have been over 1,100 proposals to establish federal holidays.[16] Some of these proposed holidays have included Election Day, Christmas Eve, and Rosa Parks Day. [17] While these days and many others have not been recognized as federal holidays, this does not mean that Congress did not see value in their purposes.[18] The denial of a proposal does not act as an insinuation by Congress that celebrations, memorials, and ceremonies should not be enacted to commemorate the day.[19] Citizens of the United States do not seem to have interpreted the value of a holiday based on its recognition by Congress either, as can be assumed by the seven billion dollars that Americans were projected to spend on St. Patrick’s Day goodies this year.[20]
[1] https://www.federaltimes.com/management/pay-benefits/2023/03/10/is-st-patricks-day-a-federal-holiday/.
[2] https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-administration/fact-sheets/holidays-work-schedules-and-pay/.
[3] https://app.frbservices.org/news/fed360/issues/111519/111519-fed-facts-bank-holidays.html.
[4] Id.
[5] https://www.narfe.org/juneteenth-and-the-establishment-of-federal-holidays/.
[6] https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-administration/fact-sheets/holidays-work-schedules-and-pay/.
[7] Id.
[8] Id.
[9] https://www.calhr.ca.gov/employees/pages/state-holidays.aspx
[10] Id.
[11] https://www.employmentlawhandbook.com/employment-and-labor-laws/states/pennsylvania/leave-laws/holidays/.
[12] https://www.capradio.org/articles/2023/09/04/do-you-get-federal-or-state-holidays-off-it-depends/.
[13] https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/budget/documents/for-commonwealth-agencies-and-employees/for-agencies/payroll/2025-calendar.pdf.
[14] https://www.employmentlawhandbook.com/employment-and-labor-laws/states/pennsylvania/leave-laws/holidays/
[15] Id.
[16] https://app.frbservices.org/news/fed360/issues/111519/111519-fed-facts-bank-holidays.html.
[17] https://www.narfe.org/juneteenth-and-the-establishment-of-federal-holidays/.
[18] Id.
[19] Id.
[20] https://nrf.com/research-insights/holiday-data-and-trends/st-patricks-day.