In fact, what seems to be happening is that the employee loses TWO days without pay. S/he loses the paid holiday, AND s/he loses eight hours of leave — another day without pay. (Maybe under the austerity rules, only seven hours will be deducted?)
What kind of flim-flammery is that? It reduces government’s “unfunded liability” — all that leave time that employees have accrued that there isn’t enough money to pay for — but it certainly doesn’t benefit the employee.
Is it even legal to co-opt employees’ annual leave time without the agreement/permission of the employee?
RUTH L. TIGHE
Tanapag, Saipan
