Applicability
GS, FP and FWS employees are eligible. FWS employees, see also Section 21. ES, FE, and FO employees are ineligible.
Rate for Holiday Work
Except as otherwise provided in this section, employees who perform work on a holiday designated by Federal statute or Executive Order are entitled to pay at their rate of basic pay, plus premium pay at a rate equal to their rate of basic pay, for holiday work which is not in excess of 8 hours or overtime work.
General Entitlement Considerations
Holiday pay, commonly called "doubletime", is not to be confused with overtime pay. Holiday premium pay is pay for nonovertime hours of work. Overtime premium pay is pay for hours of work in excess of the daily or weekly overtime standards, regardless of the day.
Holiday entitlement, i.e., an employee's right to either a paid day off or holiday premium pay for a holiday worked, depends on whether an employee is regularly scheduled. An employee who is not regularly scheduled has no entitlement to a paid holiday off and no entitlement to holiday premium pay. A regularly scheduled employee must be allowed one or the other.
When the holiday falls on an employee's regular day off, the employee must be given a day for the holiday.
Specific Entitlements
Regularly scheduled full-time and part-time employees who work a holiday earn holiday premium pay for all nonovertime hours up to 8 hours.
Employees who do not have a regularly scheduled tour of duty earn basic pay only for nonovertime hours worked on a holiday. If the holiday falls on their nonwork day, they have no entitlement to a paid day off for the holiday.
Employees who work some regularly scheduled hours on a holiday and some hours which are not regularly scheduled earn basic pay for the nonovertime hours which are not regularly scheduled and holiday pay for all nonovertime hours up to eight which are regularly scheduled.
An intermittent employee is ineligible for holiday pay because he or she does not have a regularly scheduled tour of duty.
An expert or consultant hired under 5 U.S.C. 3109 is ineligible for holiday pay unless the contract provides for holiday pay.
Full-time and part-time employees on flexible work schedules (not compressed) are entitled to up to 8 hours holiday premium pay for nonovertime work on a holiday. Full-time and part-time employees on compressed (fixed/no flex) schedules who work the holiday are entitled to holiday premium pay for all nonovertime hours of work scheduled for that day.
Employees who work a regular tour which spans a holiday and a nonholiday are paid holiday pay for all nonovertime hours of the tour.
If an employee works two shifts on a holiday, holiday pay is limited to the nonovertime hours of one tour, which one is a matter for management discretion.
Effect of Absence on Leave
An employee continues to receive holiday pay while on jury duty, on military leave, and while in receipt of continuation of pay (COP) following a work-related traumatic injury, but not for any other type of absence.
Overtime Work On a Holiday
An employee is entitled to compensation for overtime work on a holiday at the same rate as for overtime work on other days.
Call-Back on a Holiday
If call-back work performed on a holiday does not exceed two hours, and takes place wholly within hours which coincide with the employee's normal working hours, the employee's entitlements to holiday pay and call-back pay are said to be coextensive,, i.e., both entitlements stem from the same period of time. In this case, the employee will be paid for two hours at the holiday premium rate. An employee who is called-back several times on a holiday is entitled to a minimum of two hours holiday pay each time called back, the total not to exceed the nonovertime hours of the employee's tour.
If holiday call-back work spans nonovertime and overtime hours, that portion which coincides with the employee's nonovertime hours will be paid at the holiday rate and the overtime portion will be paid at the overtime rate. (See Section 10 for examples of coextensive payments.)
Relation to Overtime, Night, and Sunday Pay
Premium pay for holiday work is in addition to overtime pay, night differential, or premium pay for Sunday work and is not included in the rate of basic pay used to compute night differential or premium pay for Sunday work. It is included in computation of the overtime entitlement of FLSA EXEMPT employees.
Travel on a Holiday
Premium pay for travel on a holiday occurring during the employee's basic workweek is compensable at the holiday rate only when the travel meets the criteria in Section 9 of this Handbook and is considered "hours of work".
Recording Hours for Which Holiday Pay is Payable
Holiday pay is payable in 15-minute increments rounded up to the nearest full quarter-hour; eight or more minutes must be rounded up to the next quarter-hour, and eight minutes will be considered part of the previous quarter-hour.
