“If I could sum up why I’m committed to the HR Girlfriends community it would come down to because we are ‘….in this together.'”

~Sana’ Rasul, Chief Girlfriend

Q&A: Can We Give Exempt Employees an Unpaid Day Off?

The Fair Labor Standards Act generally requires that exempt employees – employees who are exempt from the law’s overtime requirement – be paid their regular salary regardless of the number of hours they work in a workweek. If your exempt employees are otherwise working the week of the holiday, you can’t designate it as an unpaid day for them.

As with nonexempt employees, you can require exempt employees to use accrued vacation or paid time off (PTO) to cover the closure. However, exempt employees who don’t have accrued vacation or PTO available to cover the day off still need to be paid during the closure unless they didn’t perform any work during the workweek. If you intend to require the use of PTO or vacation to cover closures, you should explain that in your handbook or policies so employees know what to expect.

This Q&A does not constitute legal advice and does not address state or local law.

Answer from Celine, SHRM-CP:
Celine has over a decade of customer service experience under her belt, including healthcare and food service expertise. She’s fluent in French and proficient in Spanish, making her nearly trilingual. Céline serves on the board of a non-profit that organizes a citywide music festival. She loves spending her time exploring the outdoors, playing with her nieces and nephews, and cooking.

Leave a comment

Never miss an opportunity to earn HRCI/SHRM credits, identify a mentor, or connect 1:1 with another HR Girlfriend in your city or across the country.

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

HR Girlfriends™ is a Human Resources networking organization dedicated to advancing the practice and culture of people empowerment. Our team of Girlfriends consult, train, educate, develop, share, promote, and advocate for solutions in the field of human resource management.

Are You IN?
Or Are You OUT?

It’s time you join forces with a community of like-minded peers ready to tackle the issues unique to the women of HR.
  • All
  • Affirmation
  • Career Mondays
  • Certification
  • COVID-19
  • CyberSAFE
  • Guest Blogger
  • HR Advisor
  • HR Law Alert
  • HR Q&A
  • HR Reading
  • HR Reel Talk
  • Join Our Team - Apply Now
  • Membership
All
  • All
  • Affirmation
  • Career Mondays
  • Certification
  • COVID-19
  • CyberSAFE
  • Guest Blogger
  • HR Advisor
  • HR Law Alert
  • HR Q&A
  • HR Reading
  • HR Reel Talk
  • Join Our Team - Apply Now
  • Membership
Affirmation

Affirmation: 4 Important Life Skills Your Parents Didn’t Teach You

We learn a lot of things in school, but many of them aren’t particularly valuable from the standpoint of practicality. You were probably required to …

Read More →
Career Mondays

Career Monday: Save Your Job – How to Deal With a Bad Boss

Odds are that you will have at least one bad boss sooner or later. It can be a very challenging situation without obvious solutions. But …

Read More →
HR Q&A

Q&A: Exempt Employee Taking Long Lunches

You can deduct hours from this exempt employee’s PTO bank for time she was scheduled to work but didn’t work, but if it wasn’t made …

Read More →
Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap