State Employees – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — Courtesy: Shutterstock — Hunter Crenian
For Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day, state employees will receive a five-day weekend and two four-day weekends, respectively.
This year, all three holidays fall on Thursdays. On the Friday following Thanksgiving, offices were already scheduled to close.
However, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said in a news release on Nov. 17 that he will also close state offices on the Fridays following Christmas and New Year’s Day (Dec. 26 and Jan. 2), as well as the Wednesday (Nov. 26) before Thanksgiving.
In a statement, DeSantis said, “Our state employees have worked hard throughout the year.”
“This holiday season, I hope people take advantage of more time off to be with friends and family. Their unwavering commitment to the people of Florida is something that the First Lady and I appreciate.
Throughout his tenure in office, DeSantis has been kind to state employees, extending holiday weekends whenever feasible.
For example, this year, in addition to the Independence Day celebration on Friday, he shuttered state offices on Thursday, July 3.
However, some workers also lose money as a result of taking time off.
According to state law, DeSantis is not allowed to show generosity to a group of workers known as Other Personal Services, or “OPS,” who are part-time employees hired to cover temporary personnel shortages in Tallahassee.
According to the Department of Management Services Annual Workforce report, OPS employees comprise over 10 percent of the lowest-paid state employees, with over 9,900 of them working across 30 state departments.
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Born and raised in South Florida, Krystal is a recent graduate from the University of Miami with professional writing experience at the collegiate and national news outlet levels. She’s a foodie who loves all things travel, the beach, & visiting new places throughout Florida.