Holidays /Special Days Off
Date: November 2022
Policy: Many departments close completely on the official observed campus holidays. The college President also has discretion to declare special days off (SDO) throughout the year in addition to official college holidays. The number and dates of observed holidays and special days off are subject to change. In departments that close on an observed campus holiday or SDO, eligible exempt (salaried) employees receive the holiday/SDO off with pay. Eligible non-exempt (hourly) employees receive the holiday/SDO off with pay at a rate equal to their current base hourly rate of pay including any applicable shift differential, based on the employee’s regular work schedule. The holiday/SDO time off will be considered hours worked for purposes of calculating a non-exempt employee’s entitlement to overtime in that given week.
Academic Year Employees: Employees who work only during the academic year do not receive holidays or other declared special days off that fall outside of the standard academic year calendar. Employees with academic year schedules that end prior to Commencement are not entitled to Memorial Day, Juneteenth or Independence Day. An academic year employee whose established academic year work schedule extends into the first week of June would be paid for the Memorial Day holiday, but not the Juneteenth or Independence Day holidays.
Over the course of the year, while the college’s administrative offices may be closed for a holiday or SDO, employees in some departments may be required to work to support students, the academic programs, and general business needs of the college. The following policies apply for non-exempt and exempt employees.
Non-Exempt Hourly Paid Employees Required to Work on an Observed Holiday/SDO
College observed holidays and special days off are designated on weekdays. The intention of this policy is to provide the equivalent number of holidays and special days off to employees who do not work a traditional Monday–Friday work schedule.
If an employee is required to work on the named holidays of Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, and Thanksgiving Day due to the essential functions of their department, they will receive additional compensation. Please contact Human Resources for details.
If a non-exempt employee is required by their manager/department to work on an observed holiday or SDO, the employee may decide to receive holiday/SDO pay in addition to their pay for all hours worked (double time pay). If a non-exempt employee works on a holiday/SDO and chooses to be paid as well, the concurrent hours are not considered when calculating overtime. An employee required to work on an observed holiday or SDO is only eligible to work and be paid the holiday/SDO if it falls on a regularly scheduled workday.
- Example: If an employee works their regularly scheduled 8 hours on a holiday/SDO and elects to be paid, then the actual hours worked (8) will be counted toward the calculation of overtime. However, the concurrent 8 hours of paid time for working on the holiday or SDO are NOT counted toward overtime pay.
- Full-time or part-time employees with a typical work schedule of Monday–Friday who are required to work on an observed holiday or SDO may choose to save the same number of holiday/SDO hours worked as vacation time.
- Example: An employee who works Mon.–Fri. 6 hours per day and is required to work on a holiday/SDO may save 6 hours to their vacation balance for future use.
- Full-time or part-time employees who have a regular work schedule that includes one or both weekend days will save 1/5th of their regularly scheduled weekly hours to their vacation balance for future use for a holiday/SDO that falls on a weekday that they are not normally scheduled to work.
- Example: An employee works 8 hours per day Wed. through Sun. and the holiday/SDO falls on a Monday. They are eligible to save 8 hours to their vacation balance for future use.
- Full-time employees with alternate work schedules that do not include weekend days can save the hours worked on a holiday/SDO to their vacation balance (if they are asked to work by their manager) but are not eligible to save 1/5th of their scheduled weekly hours for a holiday/SDO that falls on a weekday when they are not normally scheduled to work.
- Example: A full-time employee who works four 10-hour days Mon.–Thurs. is eligible for 10 hours of holiday pay for a holiday/SDO that falls on a Mon.–Thurs. or if required to work can save 10 hours to their vacation balance or receive double pay but is not eligible to save 1/5th of their scheduled weekly hours for a holiday/SDO that falls on a Friday (a non-scheduled day of work due to their alternate work schedule).
- Part-time employees who do not work a 5-day work week are eligible to save 1/5th of their scheduled weekly hours for a holiday/SDO that falls on a weekday when they are not normally scheduled to work.
- Example: A part-time employee who works 32 hours per week/8 hours per day Mon.–Thurs. can save 1/5th of their scheduled weekly hours or 6.4 hours to their vacation balance for a holiday/SDO that falls on a Friday.
In keeping with the above policies, if an employee wishes to save the holiday hours they must record the time entry on their timesheet for that pay period or in the case of employees using a time clock only, make the request with their supervisor.
If an employee must work on a holiday/SDO, but their vacation balance is at the upper maximum limit (see the Absence Management Policy for Support Staff) they will not be able to save any holiday/SDO hours worked that exceeds their maximum vacation balance but can receive double pay instead.
For more information, please see the Holiday/Special Days Off Flowchart for time entry in Workday.Exempt Monthly Paid Employees Required to Work on a Holiday/SDO
Exempt employees who are required to work on a college holiday or SDO due to operational need may also be eligible to save the holiday or SDO to their vacation balance to be used at a later date in keeping with college policy as follows:- Full-time or part-time employees with a typical work schedule of Mon.–Fri. who are required to work on a college holiday or SDO may choose to save the same number of holiday/SDO hours worked as vacation time.
- Example: An employee who works Mon.–Fri. 8 hours per day and is required to work on a holiday/SDO may save 8 hours to their vacation balance for future use.
- Full-time or part-time employees with alternate work schedules that do not fall over 5 days a week Mon.–Fri. who are required to work on a holiday/SDO may not save more than 8 hours in holiday saved time to add to their vacation balance and are not eligible to save any hours to their vacation balance for a holiday/SDO that falls on a weekday that they are not regularly scheduled to work.
- Example (full-time): An exempt full-time employee who works four 10-hour days Mon.–Thurs. and is required to work on a Monday holiday/SDO may save only 8 hours to their vacation balance. This same employee is not eligible to save any holiday/SDO hours to their vacation balance for a holiday/SDO that falls on a Friday.
- Example (part-time): An exempt part-time employee who works four 8-hour days Mon.–Thursday and is required to work on a Monday holiday/SDO may save 8 hours to their vacation balance. This same employee is not eligible to save any holiday/SDO hours to their vacation balance for a holiday/SDO that falls on a Friday.
An employee who is scheduled to work on a college holiday/SDO but is not able due to illness should consult with their manager/supervisor about how to record the absence. If an employee is scheduled to work on a holiday/SDO and fails to report as scheduled, the absence may result in disciplinary action. Should an employee fail to report for work one or two days preceding or following the holiday/SDO, whether or not that employee is scheduled to work on the holiday/SDO, disciplinary action may also be initiated.
If an employee’s last day of work falls on the day before a holiday/SDO, they are not entitled to the holiday/SDO pay upon termination of employment. An employee’s termination of employment date must be an actual last day worked. A termination date cannot be extended by the use of vacation time or holiday/SDO days.
An employee who is not in a paid status or on an unpaid leave of absence is not eligible to receive holiday/SDO pay or save these days to their vacation balances. Employees receiving Workers’ Compensation benefits should refer to the Workers’ Compensation policy for more information.
The College will reasonably accommodate an employee’s request for time off for a religious observance or practice of the employee. An employee intending to be absent from work when so required by their religion must notify their supervisor as far in advance as possible for each absence. The employee may account for this time off by using their accrued vacation time. In instances where the vacation balance if below the equivalent of one week, the supervisor should contact Human Resources to determine whether the time can be made up at within the same week or whether time off without pay can be arranged.