Holiday pay calculator

Calculate pay for working on a holiday under your company’s premium policy, plus any paid holiday hours.

In shortHoliday pay = hours worked on the holiday × rate × your holiday premium multiplier, plus paid holiday hours × rate if your policy gives them. Federal law generally does not require holiday premiums for private employers; policies and contracts do.

Who uses itPayroll staff, managers and hourly workers
WhenHoliday weeks and when setting holiday policy
You needHours worked, rate, premium multiplier, paid hours
ResultHoliday pay for workers and those off on the day

Calculator

The math behind the holiday pay

Worked pay = hours worked × rate × multiplier.

Paid holiday = paid holiday hours × rate.

Total = worked pay + paid holiday.

The holiday pay, step by step

A server earning $18 works 8 hours on Thanksgiving under a time-and-a-half holiday policy: $216, which is $72 above straight time. A colleague who has the day off with 8 paid holiday hours receives $144.

Who uses this calculator

Use it to check a paycheck or to compare holiday premium options before setting a policy.

Some states, cities or contracts have specific rules. If an employee also exceeds overtime thresholds that week, overtime rules apply too.

A different scenario

A hospital pays nursing assistants 2.5 times their rate for working Christmas Day. An assistant earning $21 an hour works a 10-hour shift, so choose 2.5 and enter 10 hours. Pay for the shift is $525.00, of which $315.00 is premium above straight time. With no separate paid holiday hours, total holiday pay is also $525.00.

Reading the result

The premium line shows what the holiday rule adds over straight time, which is the number to budget. Total pay covers only the holiday; if those hours push the week past 40, check how your policy and the overtime rules interact before paying. Paid holiday hours are valued at the base rate, so a policy that pays them at a differential rate needs a manual adjustment.

Common holiday pay errors

Paying the premium on the wrong date when the holiday is observed on a different weekday. Follow the observed date your policy names.
Paying a holiday premium and then also stacking overtime on the same hours without checking your policy. Decide whether premiums stack or the higher one applies.
Forgetting part-time staff. State whether they get paid holiday hours and how many.

Make it fit your workplace

24/7 operationsDefine whether the holiday runs midnight to midnight or follows the shift start, so night crews know which hours count.

RetailPlan for premium hours on days after holidays too, if your policy covers them.

Worth knowingPublish the year’s holiday list and premium rules in January. People plan their requests around it.

What people ask about the holiday pay

Is holiday premium pay required?

Generally not under federal law for private employers, but some state rules, contracts and policies require it.

Do holiday hours count toward overtime?

Hours not worked usually do not; hours worked do. Check your rules.

What about salaried staff?

Different rules apply.

Which days are holidays?

Those named in your policy.

Does a holiday premium count toward overtime under federal law?

Under the FLSA, a premium of at least 1.5 times the regular rate paid for working a holiday is left out of the regular rate and can be credited toward overtime owed that week. A smaller premium does not get that treatment.

What if the holiday falls on someone’s normal day off?

That is a policy choice. Common options are paying holiday hours anyway, giving a floating day, or nothing for part-timers. Write it down so a Monday holiday does not leave Tuesday to Saturday workers out by accident.

More for the same job

Skip the manual totals

Instead of adding up timesheets before you open the holiday pay calculator, let EZTime total employee hours. Book a demo to see it with your team.

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General information and an estimate only. It is not legal or payroll advice. Holiday pay obligations depend on state rules, contracts and your policy.