
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 5USC6103]

 
             TITLE 5--GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES
 
                           PART III--EMPLOYEES
 
                     Subpart E--Attendance and Leave
 
                        CHAPTER 61--HOURS OF WORK
 
                    SUBCHAPTER I--GENERAL PROVISIONS
 
Sec. 6103. Holidays

    (a) The following are legal public holidays:
        New Year's Day, January 1.
        Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., the third Monday in 
    January.
        Washington's Birthday, the third Monday in February.
        Memorial Day, the last Monday in May.
        Independence Day, July 4.
        Labor Day, the first Monday in September.
        Columbus Day, the second Monday in October.
        Veterans Day, November 11.
        Thanksgiving Day, the fourth Thursday in November.
        Christmas Day, December 25.

    (b) For the purpose of statutes relating to pay and leave of 
employees, with respect to a legal public holiday and any other day 
declared to be a holiday by Federal statute or Executive order, the 
following rules apply:
        (1) Instead of a holiday that occurs on a Saturday, the Friday 
    immediately before is a legal holiday for--
            (A) employees whose basic workweek is Monday through Friday; 
        and
            (B) the purpose of section 6309 \1\ of this title.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ See References in Text note below.

        (2) Instead of a holiday that occurs on a regular weekly non-
    workday of an employee whose basic workweek is other than Monday 
    through Friday, except the regular weekly non-workday 
    administratively scheduled for the employee instead of Sunday, the 
    workday immediately before that regular weekly nonworkday is a legal 
    public holiday for the employee.
        (3) Instead of a holiday that is designated under subsection (a) 
    to occur on a Monday, for an employee at a duty post outside the 
    United States whose basic workweek is other than Monday through 
    Friday, and for whom Monday is a regularly scheduled workday, the 
    legal public holiday is the first workday of the workweek in which 
    the Monday designated for the observance of such holiday under 
    subsection (a) occurs.

This subsection, except subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1), does not 
apply to an employee whose basic workweek is Monday through Saturday.
    (c) January 20 of each fourth year after 1965, Inauguration Day, is 
a legal public holiday for the purpose of statutes relating to pay and 
leave of employees as defined by section 2105 of this title and 
individuals employed by the government of the District of Columbia 
employed in the District of Columbia, Montgomery and Prince Georges 
Counties in Maryland, Arlington and Fairfax Counties in Virginia, and 
the cities of Alexandria and Falls Church in Virginia. When January 20 
of any fourth year after 1965 falls on Sunday, the next succeeding day 
selected for the public observance of the inauguration of the President 
is a legal public holiday for the purpose of this subsection.
    (d)(1) For purposes of this subsection--
        (A) the term ``compressed schedule'' has the meaning given such 
    term by section 6121(5); and
        (B) the term ``adverse agency impact'' has the meaning given 
    such term by section 6131(b).

    (2) An agency may prescribe rules under which employees on a 
compressed schedule may, in the case of a holiday that occurs on a 
regularly scheduled non-workday for such employees, and notwithstanding 
any other provision of law or the terms of any collective bargaining 
agreement, be required to observe such holiday on a workday other than 
as provided by subsection (b), if the agency head determines that it is 
necessary to do so in order to prevent an adverse agency impact.

(Pub. L. 89-554, Sept. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 515; Pub. L. 90-363, Sec. 1(a), 
June 28, 1968, 82 Stat. 250; Pub. L. 94-97, Sept. 18, 1975, 89 Stat. 
479; Pub. L. 98-144, Sec. 1, Nov. 2, 1983, 97 Stat. 917; Pub. L. 104-
201, div. A, title XVI, Sec. 1613, Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2739; Pub. 
L. 105-261, div. A, title XI, Sec. 1107, Oct. 17, 1998, 112 Stat. 2142.)

                      Historical and Revision Notes
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    Revised Statutes and
     Derivation                U.S. Code             Statutes at Large
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(a)................  5 U.S.C. 87.                  June 28, 1894, ch.
                                                    118, 28 Stat. 96.
                     5 U.S.C. 87a.                 May 13, 1938, ch.
                                                    210, 52 Stat. 351.
                     ............................  June 1, 1954, ch.
                                                    250, 68 Stat. 168.
                     5 U.S.C. 87b.                 Dec. 26, 1941, ch.
                                                    631, 55 Stat. 862.
(b)................  5 U.S.C. 87c.                 Sept. 22, 1959, Pub.
                                                    L. 86-362, Secs.  1,
                                                    2, 73 Stat. 643,
                                                    644.
(c)................  [Uncodified].                 Jan. 11, 1957, Pub.
                                                    L. 85-1, 71 Stat. 3.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In subsection (a), former sections 87, 87a, and 87b are combined and 
restated for clarity. The names of all holidays are inserted for ready 
reference in a like manner to that used in former section 87c.
    In subsection (c), the year ``1965'' is substituted for ``1957''.
    Standard changes are made to conform with the definitions applicable 
and the style of this title as outlined in the preface to the report.

                       References in Text

    Section 6309 of this title, referred to in subsec. (b)(1)(B), was 
repealed by Pub. L. 94-183, Sec. 2(26), Dec. 31, 1975, 89 Stat. 1058.


                               Amendments

    1998--Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 105-261 added par. (3).
    1996--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 104-201 added subsec. (d).
    1983--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 98-144 inserted item relating to birthday 
of Martin Luther King, Jr.
    1975--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 94-97 changed Veterans Day from fourth 
Monday in October to November 11.
    1968--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 90-363 added Columbus Day, the second 
Monday in October, to the enumerated legal public holidays, and 
substituted provisions that Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, and 
Veterans Day are to be celebrated on the third Monday in February, the 
last Monday in May, and the fourth Monday in October, respectively, for 
provisions that the above mentioned public holidays are to be celebrated 
on February 22, May 30, and November 11, respectively.


                    Effective Date of 1983 Amendment

    Section 2 of Pub. L. 98-144 provided that: ``The amendment made by 
the first section of this Act [amending this section] shall take effect 
on the first January 1 that occurs after the two-year period following 
the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 2, 1983].''


                    Effective Date of 1975 Amendment

    Pub. L. 94-97 provided that the amendment made by Pub. L. 94-97 is 
effective Jan. 1, 1978.


                    Effective Date of 1968 Amendment

    Section 2 of Pub. L. 90-363 provided that: ``The amendment made by 
subsection (a) of the first section of this Act [amending this section] 
shall take effect on January 1, 1971.''


 References in Laws of the United States to Observances of Legal Public 
                                Holidays

    Section 1(b) of Pub. L. 90-363 provided that: ``Any reference in a 
law of the United States (in effect on the effective date of the 
amendment made by subsection (a) of this section) [January 1, 1971] to 
the observance of a legal public holiday on a day other than the day 
prescribed for the observance of such holiday by section 6103(a) of 
title 5, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), shall on and 
after such effective date be considered a reference to the day for the 
observance of such holiday prescribed in such amended section 6103(a).''

                        Executive Order No. 10358

    Ex. Ord. No. 10358, June 9, 1952, 17 F.R. 1529, as amended by Ex. 
Ord. No. 11226, May 27, 1965, 30 F.R. 7213; Ex. Ord. No. 11272, Feb. 23, 
1966, 31 F.R. 3111, which related to the observance of holidays, was 
revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 11582, Feb. 11, 1971, 36 F.R. 2957, set out 
below.

               Ex. Ord. No. 11582. Observance of Holidays

    Ex. Ord. No. 11582, Feb. 11, 1971, 36 F.R. 2957, provided:
    By virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United 
States, it is hereby ordered as follows:
    Section 1. Except as provided in section 7, this order shall apply 
to all executive departments, independent agencies, and Government 
corporations, including their field services.
    Sec. 2. As used in this order:
    (a) Holiday means the first day of January, the third Monday of 
February, the last Monday of May, the fourth day of July, the first 
Monday of September, the second Monday of October, the fourth Monday of 
October, the fourth Thursday of November, the twenty-fifth day of 
December, or any other calendar day designated as a holiday by Federal 
statute or Executive order.
    (b) Workday means those hours which comprise in sequence the 
employee's regular daily tour of duty within any 24-hour period, whether 
falling entirely within one calendar day or not.
    Sec. 3. (a) Any employee whose basic workweek does not include 
Sunday and who would ordinarily be excused from work on a holiday 
falling within his basic workweek shall be excused from work on the next 
workday of his basic workweek whenever a holiday falls on Sunday.
    (b) Any employee whose basic workweek includes Sunday and who would 
ordinarily be excused from work on a holiday falling within his basic 
workweek shall be excused from work on the next workday of his basic 
workweek whenever a holiday falls on a day that has been 
administratively scheduled as his regular weekly nonworkday in lieu of 
Sunday.
    Sec. 4. The holiday for a full-time employee for whom the head of a 
department has established the first 40 hours of duty performed within a 
period of not more than six days of the administrative workweek as his 
basic workweek because of the impracticability of prescribing a regular 
schedule of definite hours of duty for each workday, shall be determined 
as follows:
    (a) If a holiday occurs on Sunday, the head of the department shall 
designate in advance either Sunday or Monday as the employee's holiday 
and the employee's basic 40-hour tour of duty shall be deemed to include 
eight hours on the day designated as the employee's holiday.
    (b) If a holiday occurs on Saturday, the head of the department 
shall designate in advance either the Saturday or the preceding Friday 
as the employee's holiday and the employee's basic 40-hour tour of duty 
shall be deemed to include eight hours on the day designated as the 
employee's holiday.
    (c) If a holiday occurs on any other day of the week, that day shall 
be the employee's holiday, and the employee's basic 40-hour tour of duty 
shall be deemed to include eight hours on that day.
    (d) When a holiday is less than a full day, proportionate credit 
will be given under paragraph (a), (b), or (c) of this section.
    Sec. 5. Any employee whose workday covers portions of two calendar 
days and who would, except for this section, ordinarily be excused from 
work scheduled for the hours of any calendar day on which a holiday 
falls, shall instead be excused from work on his entire workday which 
commences on any such calendar day.
    Sec. 6. In administering the provisions of law relating to pay and 
leave of absence, the workdays referred to in sections 3, 4, and 5 shall 
be treated as holidays in lieu of the corresponding calendar holidays.
    Sec. 7. The provisions of this order shall apply to officers and 
employees of the Post Office Department and the United States Postal 
Service (except that sections 3, 4, 5, and 6 shall not apply to the 
Postal Field Service) until changed by the Postal Service in accordance 
with the Postal Reorganization Act.
    Sec. 8. Executive Order No. 10358 of June 9, 1952, entitled 
Observance of Holidays by Government Agencies and amendatory Executive 
Orders No. 11226 of May 27, 1965, and No. 11272 of February 23, 1966, 
are revoked.
    Sec. 9. This order is effective as of January 1, 1971.
                                                          Richard Nixon.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 6104, 6124 of this title; 
title 12 section 3710; title 21 section 1053; title 29 section 1201; 
title 38 section 5120; title 42 section 909.
