by On May 30, 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued guidance on calculating use of Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave during a week containing a holiday. In response to an employer question, the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division clarified how the employer should calculate the use of FMLA leave:
- When an employee takes a full week of leave during a workweek that includes a holiday; and
- When an employee takes intermittent FMLA leave of less than a full week during a workweek that includes a holiday.
Full Workweek of FMLA Leave: When an employee takes a full workweek of FMLA leave during a week that includes a holiday, the employee is considered to have used a full week of FMLA leave. Example: Employee’s regular workweek is Monday through Friday. Employee takes a full week of FMLA leave during the week of the Fourth of July (which is a Tuesday in 2023). Employee has used one week of FMLA leave.
Partial Week of FMLA Leave: When an employee takes FMLA leave for less than a full workweek and the workweek includes a holiday, the calculation is to be performed as follows:
The Amount of FMLA Leave Taken (not including the holiday)
Divided By
The Complete Workweek (including the holiday)
Example: Employee’s regular workweek is Monday through Friday. During the workweek containing Memorial Day, Employee takes Tuesday and Wednesday as FMLA leave. Employee has taken two days of FMLA leave out of a five-day workweek. Therefore, Employee has taken 2/5 of a week of FMLA leave. Whether the calculation is done by days or by hours, FMLA leave used works out the same.
The opinion letter, FMLA2023-2-A, is found at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/opinion-letters/search.
