Holiday FAQs
OHR Home Page   jobs.sc.gov   Hot Topics Career Opportunities Employee Services Employer Services Training & Development Statistical Info How to Contact Us OHR Webmail Other Agencies State Employees Weather Alert Workforce Planning Sam Wilkins, Director 1201 Main Street Suite 800 Columbia, SC 29201 Phone: (803) 737-0900		SC Code of Laws §§ 53-5-10 through 53-5-50 State HR Regulations Section 19-708 General Information Q: What holidays do State employees observe? A: State employees observe the following holidays: New Year’s Day -- January 1 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day -- Third Monday in January George Washington’s Birthday or President’s Day -- Third Monday in February Confederate Memorial Day -- May 10 National Memorial Day -- Last Monday in May Independence Day -- July 4 Labor Day -- First Monday in September Veterans Day -- November 11 Thanksgiving Day -- Fourth Thursday in November Day after Thanksgiving -- December 25 Day after Christmas -- December 26 Q: What holiday can the Governor declare? A: The Governor has the authority each year to grant Christmas Eve as an additional holiday. Q: What happens if a holiday falls on Saturday or Sunday? A: If a holiday falls on a Saturday, employees working a Monday through Friday schedule will observe the holiday on the preceding Friday. If a holiday falls on a Sunday, employees working a Monday through Friday schedule will observe the holiday on the following Monday. Q: Who is eligible for paid holidays? A: Employees in FTE positions are eligible for paid holidays. Time limited project and temporary grant employees may also be eligible for paid holidays when the time limited contract or grant permits the eligibility. Q: How do public colleges and universities schedule holidays? A: The holiday schedules of colleges and universities may be modified based on the academic schedule, but the number of holidays cannot exceed the number of holidays allowed by the State and as stated in the State Human Resources Regulation 19-708.02. Holiday Compensatory Time Q: If an employee is required to work on a holiday, how much holiday compensatory time should the employee earn for that holiday? A: An employee will earn holiday compensatory time equal to all hours worked during that holiday, not to exceed the employee's average workday. Q: How long does an employee have to use accumulated holiday compensatory time? A: An employee not following an academic schedule should be allowed to use holiday compensatory time within 90 days of the holiday. An employee following an academic schedule should be allowed to use holiday compensatory time within one year of the holiday. Q: If a non-exempt employee is unable to use holiday compensatory time within the required timeframes, what happens to the unused holiday compensatory time? A: A non-exempt employee should be compensated for the holiday by the employing agency at the straight hourly pay rate of the employee. Q: Can the agency extend the time to allow a non-exempt employee to use accumulated holiday compensatory time? A: An agency may submit a request for an additional 90 days to the Office of Human Resources (OHR). The request must be made prior to the end of the original 90-day period and must be based on limited staffing. Q: Can an employee be compensated for all unused holiday compensatory time upon separation from employment? A: A nonexempt employee should be compensated for all holiday compensatory time upon separation from employment. An exempt employee cannot be paid for unused holiday compensatory time upon separation from employment. Q: How does an agency determine the number of hours contained in a holiday for an employee in an FTE position? A: The length of an employee’s holiday is computed based on the number of hours in the employee’s average workday. The number of hours in a holiday is determined by dividing the total number of hours an employee is regularly scheduled to work during a week by five (regardless of the number of days the employee actually reports to work). Example: M - 5 T - 10 W - 5 TH - 10 F - 7.5 37.5 hours Average workday = 37.5/5=7.5 hours In the preceding example, if the holiday falls on Monday, the employee would receive 5 hours of holiday time and 2.5 hours of holiday compensatory time. Q: If an employee works a compressed workweek, how does this affect the amount of holiday compensatory time he earns for a holiday on which he is not scheduled to work? A: For an employee working on a compressed workweek, he is eligible to receive holiday compensatory time equal to the number of hours in his average workday when a holiday falls on a non-scheduled workday. Q: Does an employee who is required to work a portion of a holiday due to shift work earn holiday compensatory time? A: An employee who is required to work a portion of the holiday due to a shift that begins on one day and ends on another shall be granted holiday compensatory time equal to all hours actually worked on the holiday. Q: Does a part-time employee in an FTE position receive a holiday on a non-scheduled workday? (For example, the employee works Monday through Thursday, 30 hours a week and Friday is a holiday.) A: A part-time employee is treated the same as a full-time employee in an FTE position in applying holiday guidelines. The employee will receive the holiday or holiday compensatory time based on the number of hours in his average workday. Holidays While On Leave Q: Is an employee who is on paid leave (i.e., sick or annual leave) when a holiday occurs entitled to the holiday? A: An employee who is on paid leave on a legal holiday is entitled to the legal holiday and is not required to take paid leave for that holiday. Q: Is an employee eligible for a holiday when that employee is on leave without pay? A: An employee who is on leave without pay should not be paid or receive holiday compensatory time for holidays falling during this period of leave without pay. Q: When a holiday occurs during a period when an employee is taking FMLA leave, does the employee receive the holiday? A: If a holiday occurs during a period when an employee is taking FMLA leave and is on paid leave, the holiday is counted as a day of FMLA leave and included in the total 12 workweeks of FMLA leave an employee is eligible to receive during each calendar year.

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