Holiday Pay Following a Day Off

I am a midnight shift employee. If I am off on Sunday night but work the night of the holiday (in this case Monday), do I get holiday pay being that I worked a part of the holiday?

Q:  We are midnight shift employees working 23:00-07:30. When we come in on Sunday night, we get Sunday premium because we worked a part of Sunday. When there is a holiday on Monday, we don’t get holiday pay until we work Monday night because we can’t get two premiums (Sunday diff and Holiday) at the same time. The question is if I am off on Sunday night but work the night of the holiday (in this case Monday), do I get holiday pay being that I worked a part of the holiday?

A:  As a little background, for employees covered by the GS premium pay regulations there is only one day that is a holiday and, for those who work shifts that start on one day and end on another, the holiday is the shift that begins on the holiday.  That’s why when you work, for example, a Sunday through Thursday schedule 2300 to 0730, Sunday premium pay goes to the shift that begins on Sunday, and the holiday pay goes to the shift that starts on the Monday holiday.  See www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-administration/fact-sheets/holidays-work-schedules-and-pay/.

Now to your actual question which was if you work a Sunday through Thursday night shift (or any shift that includes both Sunday and Monday nights) and you are off on Sunday, will you get holiday premium pay when you work the shift that begins on the Monday holiday?  The answer is yes, you are entitled to receive holiday premium pay for a shift you work and that begins on a Monday holiday.  See 5 CFR 610.202(a).

The only reason I can think of that might cause you to ask that question is you may have heard about the requirement that you must be in a pay status on scheduled workdays either before or after the scheduled workday on a holiday in order to qualify for basic pay on a holiday you do not work. This includes both paid time spent working and time in a paid leave status either before or after the regular shift that falls on the holiday.  From what you’ve told me about your schedule this requirement does not pose any problems for you regarding payment of holiday premium pay on a Monday holiday when that shift is part of your basic 40 hour requirement.

Wayne Coleman is a federal pay expert available to help your agency avoid premium pay claims through on-site training. Contact him for more information.

About the Author

Wayne Coleman is a compensation consultant whose career at various Federal agencies and in private practice spans almost 40 years. During this time he has written about and provided training on overtime and premium pay, on the principles of FLSA coverage and exemption, and on related Federal compensation issues. Wayne is available to help your agency avoid premium pay claims through consulting services and training. You can contact him at wayneslyhouse@comcast.net.