President Donald Trump has given federal workers two additional days off around Christmas after he complained of “too many non-working holidays” on Juneteenth.
Trump signed an executive order Thursday that will see federal agencies close and employees excused from work on Christmas Eve and December 26, giving them three days off from Wednesday through Friday inclusive of Christmas Day.
The president noted in his order that some agency heads “may determine that certain offices and installations of their organizations, or parts thereof, must remain open and that certain employees must report for duty” on the two additional days.
The move follows Trump’s earlier criticism of Juneteenth, a federal holiday added by his predecessor Joe Biden in 2021, which commemorates the day in 1865 when the last enslaved Americans were freed.
Trump chose June 19 to complain that there were “too many non-working holidays in America.”
“It is costing our Country $BILLIONS OF DOLLARS to keep all of these businesses closed,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “The workers don’t want it either! Soon we’ll end up having a holiday for every once working day of the year.”
With the addition of Dec. 24 and Dec. 26 there will be 13 federal holidays in total this year.
Trump designated Christmas Eve a federal holiday during his first term in 2019 and 2020. Former President Barack Obama did the same for Dec. 26.
Congress must pass legislation to establish a permanent federal holiday and the president must sign it into law.
Since his reelection, Trump has made the elimination of DEI programs a centerpiece of his administration, cracking down on diversity efforts in the federal government with a series of executive orders.
Earlier this month, the National Park Service announced it will offer free admission to U.S. residents on Trump’s birthday next year, along with other federal holidays, but excluded the benefit from Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth.
The new free-admission policy takes effect Jan. 1 and was one of several changes announced by the Park Service late last month, including higher admission fees for international visitors.
The other days of free park admission in 2026 are Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Constitution Day, Veterans Day, President Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday (Oct. 27) and the anniversary of the creation of the Park Service (Aug. 25).
The Associated Press contributed reporting.
