Pueblo County commissioners debate proposed 2027 holiday schedule and employee options

Nick Anjaki presented a draft 2027 holiday calendar and asked commissioners to consider tradeoffs between competitive benefits and service accessibility.

He highlighted two days in brown on the draft calendar — the employee appreciation day (June 2) and Christmas Day observation — and said the county currently offers roughly 17.5 paid days that would round to 18 in 2027 under the draft. "I know a lot of employees probably won't like me in bringing this forward, but it needs to be transparent," he said, noting budget constraints and prior years when employee appreciation events could not be funded.

Commissioners compared the county's calendar to peers and expressed differing viewpoints. Anjaki said many peers and state agencies offer around 11 holidays; one commissioner urged trimming days and singled out the two back‑to‑back October holidays (Cabrini Day and Columbus/Indigenous Peoples Day) for examination, while another commissioner defended a larger holiday package as a recruitment advantage. The board discussed allowing part‑time employees to choose two holidays rather than limiting their choices to the year's final five days.

Staff also flagged operational complexities — programming holiday calendars into Workday and allowing employees to bank hours if they work on an observed holiday — and committed to provide estimated dollar values for a paid holiday if requested by commissioners.