Indiana state employee holidays for 2026 add up to 15 paid days off, drawn from the 13 legal holidays listed in Indiana Code 1-1-9-1 plus the state’s practice of shifting Lincoln’s Birthday and Washington’s Birthday onto the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code Title 1 General Provisions 1-1-9-1 – List; Observance Full-time employees receive 7.5 hours of holiday pay per day, but only if they were in pay status during the week the holiday is observed.
2026 Holiday Schedule
The Indiana State Personnel Department has set the following observed dates for 2026:2Indiana State Personnel Department. State Holidays
- New Year’s Day: Thursday, January 1
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Monday, January 19
- Good Friday: Friday, April 3
- Primary Election Day: Tuesday, May 5
- Memorial Day: Monday, May 25
- Independence Day: Friday, July 3 (Monday–Friday operations) or Saturday, July 4 (Saturday/Sunday operations)
- Labor Day: Monday, September 7
- Columbus Day: Monday, October 12
- General Election Day: Tuesday, November 3
- Veterans Day: Wednesday, November 11
- Thanksgiving Day: Thursday, November 26
- Lincoln’s Birthday: Friday, November 27
- Washington’s Birthday: Thursday, December 24
- Christmas Day: Friday, December 25
The statutory list itself covers New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday, Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, George Washington’s Birthday, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Election Day (any general, municipal, or primary election), Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code Title 1 General Provisions 1-1-9-1 – List; Observance Because Election Day includes primaries, employees pick up two election-related holidays in even-numbered years.
Why Lincoln’s and Washington’s Birthdays Move
Under the statute, Lincoln’s Birthday falls on February 12 and Washington’s Birthday on the third Monday in February. Indiana observes them elsewhere on the calendar. Lincoln’s Birthday is taken the day after Thanksgiving, and Washington’s Birthday is taken on Christmas Eve. The state has done this for years to spread the holidays out and give employees the Friday after Thanksgiving and December 24 as paid days off rather than stacking two observances in mid-February.
When a Holiday Falls on a Weekend
Indiana Code 1-1-9-1 sets the weekend rule. If a holiday other than Sunday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday is the legal holiday. If a holiday falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday is observed.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code Title 1 General Provisions 1-1-9-1 – List; Observance
Independence Day 2026 is the practical example. July 4 lands on a Saturday, so employees on a Monday-through-Friday schedule observe the holiday Friday, July 3. Employees whose regular schedules include Saturday observe July 4 itself.
Who Gets Holiday Pay
Full-time, part-time, and hourly employees in permanent positions are all eligible for holiday compensation. The condition that catches people is the “pay status” requirement: during the calendar week the holiday is observed, you must have worked or used paid leave for at least as many hours as the holiday pay you would receive.3Indiana State Personnel Department. State of Indiana Employees Holiday Policy
Take unpaid leave for the whole week, and holiday pay for that week disappears. The same applies at the edges of employment. You do not receive holiday pay for a day observed before your first day on the job or after your last day.2Indiana State Personnel Department. State Holidays New hires and departing employees should watch the calendar accordingly.
Temporary and intermittent employees are treated differently. If they are required to work a holiday, they get their regular pay for the hours worked and no additional holiday compensation.3Indiana State Personnel Department. State of Indiana Employees Holiday Policy
How Much Holiday Pay You Receive
Full-time employees who are not required to work on a holiday receive 7.5 hours multiplied by their base hourly rate. Part-time and hourly employees receive one-tenth of their regular biweekly hours, rounded to the nearest quarter-hour.3Indiana State Personnel Department. State of Indiana Employees Holiday Policy
In practice, a part-time employee scheduled for 40 hours biweekly gets 4 hours of holiday pay. Someone scheduled for 60 hours biweekly gets 6 hours.
Accrued leave is not charged on a holiday unless you choose to use it. That choice matters only when your regular daily shift runs longer than 7.5 hours and you want to cover the gap between the holiday credit and a full day.3Indiana State Personnel Department. State of Indiana Employees Holiday Policy
Working on a Holiday
Corrections, public safety, healthcare, and other essential operations run through the holidays. Indiana pays those employees their regular wages for the hours worked and gives them holiday pay on top. You choose whether to take the holiday portion as cash or as compensatory time off, though the appointing authority can require the comp time to be used within the same pay period.3Indiana State Personnel Department. State of Indiana Employees Holiday Policy
Comp time is authorized by 31 IAC 5-7-6 at a straight-time rate, not time-and-a-half.4Legal Information Institute. 31 IAC 5-7-6 – Compensatory Time Off A full-time employee who works a 7.5-hour holiday shift ends up with 7.5 hours of regular pay for the shift plus 7.5 hours of holiday pay or equivalent comp time. The Fair Labor Standards Act does not itself require premium pay for working a holiday; overtime obligations only kick in if the workweek exceeds 40 hours.5U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #23 – Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA
Religious Days Not on the Calendar
The state calendar will not cover every observance. If your faith requires a day that is not listed, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires your employer to make reasonable accommodations for sincerely held religious practices, unless doing so would create an undue hardship.6U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Fact Sheet: Religious Accommodations in the Workplace
The threshold for undue hardship changed in 2023. In Groff v. DeJoy, the Supreme Court held that an employer must show the accommodation would impose a substantial burden in the overall context of the business. A minor inconvenience or de minimis cost is not enough to deny the request.7U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Religious Discrimination
No formal application or specific language is required. Tell your supervisor you need time off for a religious reason. Common accommodations include schedule swaps, flexible start times, and use of personal leave. If more detail is needed, your employer should engage in an interactive conversation rather than deny the request outright.6U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Fact Sheet: Religious Accommodations in the Workplace
Extra Days Declared by the Governor
Beyond the 13 statutory holidays, Indiana’s governor can grant additional days off to state employees through executive orders. These declarations cover state workers and do not automatically extend to county, municipal, or private-sector employees. When an extra day is announced through official state channels, the standard holiday pay rules apply to it.