Employer Considerations for the Juneteenth Holiday

By Jonathan J. Downes and George S. Crisci*

Last week, Congress, President Biden, and Governor DeWine declared June 19th (often referred to by the portmanteau “Juneteenth”) as an officially recognized holiday.

Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. The holiday originates from the events of June 19, 1865, when Gordon Granger, a Union general, arrived in Galveston, Texas and announced that the Civil War had ended and that the enslaved African-Americans were free. Granger’s announcement put into full effect the Emancipation Proclamation, which President Abraham Lincoln issued more than two and a half years earlier on January 1, 1863.

How should employers respond to the federal and state recognition of Juneteenth, especially in light of the last-minute nature of these announcements?

For private sector employers, these changes do not constitute a binding mandate. Such private sector employers should consider whether to include Juneteenth in the list of recognized holidays in their company policies, handbooks, and/or collective bargaining agreements. Such employers should also review the existing language of their holiday leave policies and applicable collective bargaining agreements to determine whether they have already incorporated federal or state recognized holidays (which would now include Juneteenth).

For public sector employers without unionized employees, the same considerations would generally apply, subject to statutory provisions that establish paid holidays for employees (such as the civil service laws or statutes regulating cities, villages and counties). However, the last-minute nature of these announcements may create some confusion – at least, for 2021. For public sector employers with collective bargaining agreements, such employers should also review the existing language of their applicable collective bargaining agreements to determine whether they have already incorporated federal or state recognized holidays (which would now include Juneteenth).

Ohio Revised Code References for Public Sector Employers

Under Ohio’s civil service laws, specifically R.C. § 124.19, state holidays include several specific dates along with “any day appointed and recommended by the governor of this state or the president of the United States.” R.C. § 124.18(B)(1) requires that, “[a]n employee, whose salary or wage is paid in whole or in part by the state, shall be paid for the holidays declared in section 124.19 of the Revised Code and shall not be required to work on those holidays, unless, in the opinion of the employee’s responsible administrative authority, failure to work on those holidays would impair the public service.”

For county employees, employers may not charge against a county employee’s vacation leave days defined as holidays under R.C. § 124.19 See R.C. 325.19(C). However, that statute (at present) omits Juneteenth as a specifically enumerated holiday. See R.C. 325.19(D)(1).

For municipal employees (cities and villages), the provisions of R.C. § 124.19 do not apply, and cities may establish their own holidays by local ordinance. City officials should consult their existing ordinances, policies, and handbooks to determine whether they have incorporated any of the holiday lists (such as the “any day” language found in R.C. § 124.19) into their policies, which may trigger an obligation to recognize Juneteenth in 2021 or subsequent years. Similarly, Townships may designate holidays for their employees, but should consult the existing language to determine whether it would automatically include recognition of Juneteenth.

In addition, public employers should carefully review their policy manuals or handbooks for references to holidays outside of those listed in the Ohio Revised Code or ordinance.

Union Collective Bargaining Agreements in Public and Private Sectors

Some collective bargaining agreements (“CBA”) have general language in their contract which provides for any holiday established by Act of Congress or the Ohio General Assembly or declared by the President or the Governor. If the employer’s CBA has the same or substantially similar language, the Juneteenth holiday likely applies –even in 2021. Employers will need to negotiate how to address the observance of Juneteenth for 2021, as the actual date of the holiday passed before employers could implement the new holiday.

Absent such language (e.g., the CBA just lists the observed holidays and contains no language that could expand the list during the term of the CBA), employers can argue that they do not have to permit– and cannot unilaterally provide the new holiday. This is because the new holiday constitutes a change in working conditions that the employer and union must negotiate.

Regardless of the employment setting, employers might want to consider two alternatives for observing Juneteenth during 2021:

1. Give employees an extra vacation day this year; or
2. Establish a holiday this year or early next year, possibly appending the day to an existing holiday, such as:

• the Friday before the Independence Day holiday weekend (July 4 falling on a Sunday and Monday as the observed holiday),
• the Friday before the Labor Day weekend,
• the day before or after Thanksgiving (depending upon whether the employer observes the day after Thanksgiving as a holiday),
• the day before Christmas Eve (Christmas occurring on a Saturday, making Christmas Even the observed holiday),
• the day before New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Eve (depending upon whether the employer observes New Year’s Eve as a holiday),
• the Friday before the MLK holiday weekend or MLK Day (depending upon whether the employer observes MLK Day as a holiday),
• the Friday before the President’s Day holiday weekend or President’s Day (same rationale as MLK Day), or
• the day before Good Friday, Good Friday or the day after Easter Sunday.

Employers could designate these extra holiday options as a ‘late’ observance of Juneteenth for 2021.

Conclusion

Employers have many options relative to this holiday. These options depend on the type of employer, relevant laws and ordinances, the employer’s policy manual, or the existence of a CBA. Given that both state and federal governments have recognized Juneteenth as an official holiday, employers should consider how and when to implement policies and answer employee questions regarding the Juneteenth holiday moving forward.

*For more information about implementation of Juneteenth, employer policies generally or collective bargaining issues, please contact George S. Crisci (gsc@zrlaw.com) at 216-696-4441 or Jonathan J. Downes (jjd@zrlaw.com) at 614-224-4411.