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Holidays

Macalester observes 10 paid holidays, 1 employee-designated floating holiday and Winter Break for eligible employees. Employees are eligible for paid holidays when a Macalester-designated holiday lands on a day when the employee is normally scheduled to work. The employee will be eligible for paid time equal to the number of hours the employee is normally scheduled to work on that day. If an observed holiday falls on a day when the employee is not regularly scheduled to work, they will not receive pay for that day, nor will they be allowed to exchange another day off in place of the holiday. 

  • Designated Holidays

    • New Year’s Day
    • Martin Luther King Jr. Day
    • Memorial Day
    • Juneteenth
    • Independence Day
    • Labor Day
    • Thanksgiving Day
    • Friday after Thanksgiving
    • Christmas Eve Day
    • Christmas Day
    • *Winter Break (December 26-31)
    • Floating Holiday (employee-designated)

    *Macalester will be closed for Winter Break on the workdays that occur between December 26-31.

     

    Please visit the 2024-2025 Holiday Schedule to confirm which dates regular holidays will be observed by the College.

     

    Important Note: Members of Macalester’s collective bargaining units (CBU) should refer to the collective bargaining agreement in force for paid leaves of absence policies.
  • Eligibility + Holiday Scheduling

    Eligible employees must work at least 0.50 FTE (average of 19.375 hours per week over a calendar year) and be employed on a regular, ongoing basis. Temporary and casual employees are not eligible for paid holidays, unless they are required to work on a day designated as a holiday.

    In order to be eligible for paid holidays, the employee must be in an active working status the day before and the day after a holiday. If a holiday occurs while an employee is on a leave of absence (i.e. parenting leave, FMLA, personal leave) that extends beyond 2 weeks, the employee is not eligible for a paid holiday. If the holiday occurs during a leave period that is 2 weeks or shorter, the employee is eligible. 

     

    Holiday Scheduling

    As with other time off benefits, time associated with paid holidays is not considered time worked and does not count toward weekly overtime limits. 

    When a holiday lands on a weekend, Macalester will observe the holiday on an alternate date. When the actual holiday falls on a Saturday, the holiday will be observed on the preceding Friday. When the actual holiday falls on a Sunday, the holiday will be observed on the following Monday.
  • Employees Required to Work on a Holiday

    When employees are required by their manager to work on a holiday, the following conditions apply: 

    • Exempt, full-time or part-time (working at least 0.50 FTE) – Employees who are required to work may adjust their work schedule and take another equivalent amount of time off during the same pay period or the pay period immediately preceding or following the holiday, with approval from their manager.
    • Nonexempt, casual or temporary – Employees who are required to work will receive 2 times their regular rate of pay for all time worked on the day. 
    • Collective bargaining unit employees should refer to their collective bargaining agreement.

    When a nonexempt employee is required to work on an actual holiday that lands on a weekend, the employee is eligible to receive holiday pay at 2 times their regular rate of pay. They are also eligible to receive holiday pay at 2 times their regular rate of pay if they are required to work on the observed holiday.
  • Floating Holiday

    Benefit eligible employees will receive 1 floating holiday each calendar year to use how they see fit. Hours associated with the floating holiday must be taken in whole day increments and should not be broken across multiple days. A whole day increment is equal to the number of hours the employee is normally scheduled to work on a day they select to use their floating holiday.

    Scheduling of a floating holiday is subject to approval by the manager. Employees who do not use their floating holiday by the end of the current calendar year will lose it. Macalester does not reimburse employees for any unused floating holidays at the end of employment. As with other time off benefits, time associated with the floating holiday is not considered time worked and does not count toward weekly overtime limits. 

    Your floating holiday balance on your employee dashboard will begin at zero each calendar year and when the floating holiday is used, it will show in your employee dashboard as a negative balance.

    Entering Floating Holiday on Leave Report or Timesheet

    When you enter your floating holiday on your leave report or timesheet, you will receive a warning message about using your floating holiday and that you will be going into a negative balance. This warning message is expected and we are not able to turn it off.
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