Paid Holiday Overview
UTPA offices will be closed during all official University holidays. Offices should ensure that a recorded telephone message is activated at the close of business the day prior to any official University holiday. The recorded message should state the department name, reason and period of closure, and day/date offices will reopen for normal business. Example: “You have reached the Department of _________. All university offices are closed for the Winter Holiday from Monday through Friday, December 26th through the 30th. Offices will reopen on Monday, January 2nd.”
Holiday Schedule Determination
The number of holidays for state agencies and institutions of higher education is authorized in Texas Government Code Chapter 662. Currently, 9 specific national holidays and 8 specific state holidays are authorized. A holiday that falls on a Saturday or Sunday is not observed. Furthermore, Section 662.011 authorizes the governing body of an institution of higher education to establish a different holiday schedule for the institution, subject to any applicable limitation on the observance of holidays prescribed by the General Appropriations Act. The number of holidays that an institution’s employees observe, however, may not exceed the number of holidays that state agency employees are entitled to observe.
For Fiscal Year 2012, 13 of the authorized national and state holidays fall on weekdays. Accordingly, institutions of higher education are permitted 13 days in their holiday schedule.
The UTPA Holiday Schedule is determined by the President’s Cabinet and is published through the Human Resources Department annually.
Paid Holiday Leave
Paid holiday leave is provided to regular employees who are appointed to work at least 20 hours per week for a period of at least four and one-half continuous months. Regular employees appointed less than full-time but at least 20 hours per week are eligible for holiday leave proportionate to the number of hours appointed. Employees who work on a holiday will receive equivalent time off within the 12-month period following the holiday worked.
Optional Holidays
The Legislature has designated Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Cesar Chavez Day, and Good Friday as optional holidays. A holiday pay-eligible employee may observe optional holidays by working on any holiday in which an essential workforce is required or by using vacation leave.
