Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Health Agency to consider Juneteenth holiday in future

Now that Juneteenth is an official federal holiday, Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Health Agency will consider adding it to its official holiday calendar, along with Veterans Day.

The agency board policy committee discussed it Monday.

Municipal governments worked Monday. Almost all private businesses did also. Some county offices were open and since Juneteenth was not on the calendar for the health agency, its staff also worked.

A scramble came after the Michigan Supreme Court on June 1 classified the new 2021 federal holiday as a court holiday. Like other state employees who negotiated the holiday in its 2021 labor contracts, that gave state court employees, including judges, the paid day off.

Branch County made it a paid holiday this year and next. The administration noted most of the county government relates to the court system, which would not operate.

Hillsdale County also declared it a holiday. Commissioner Mark Wiley noted there is no mail service, banks are closed and state and federal offices are closed.

"There's a certain amount of business that you're just not going to be able to conduct. So is there really a value to being open?" he asked.

In Hillsdale County, Wiley added, "Actually, in our revised new county handbook for employees, it basically states that our holiday schedule will align with the state."

Hillsdale commissioner Brent Leininger said since court employees, except judges, are paid by the county, they should be at work Monday.

Wiley said there is talk of again revising the employee handbook.

"I think there's going to be resistance to change that language," he said. "Simply because the court calendar is very similar to the calendar that we've already got in the union contracts."

Wiley said the holiday might be an issue to be negotiated in new union contracts since that commission only approved Juneteenth for 2022.

In St. Joseph County, court employees were off, but had to take a vacation day to be paid.

Branch County commissioner Tom Matthew noted the holiday celebrates the day black Texans were notified they were free, two years after The Emancipation Proclamation.

"Even though it took two years to reach to Galveston, we don't want to wait two years to implement what the state has told us. I believe we need to support and give the opportunity for the employees to take the day off in honor of that particular day we are observing," he said.

Health agency director Rebecca Burns said the state observes three more holidays than the agency. One is the November general election day in even-numbered years. The other two are Juneteenth and Veterans Day. Matthew said Veterans Day had not been discussed and wanted more information. He suggested the cost to the agency needs to be researched for the holidays.

"Public employees get paid less than the private sector," Wiley said. "Holidays are a form of a bonus to them to help make up that gap between the private pay sector and the public pay sector. And personally, I don't think the money part should enter into the discussion."

"Our wage scale is far behind," Burns said.

A compensation comparison study recommended the agency minimum wages increase.

"We couldn't quite get there.," she said. "We were able to do a small raise to get people closer, but we're still far behind, even what that consultant recommended. We're going to be bringing to you another request to try and continue to move those wages higher. And if there's consideration of time lost versus the holiday, we're going to be on the side of pay for staff, without any doubt."

The committee made no recommendation to the entire six-member board.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Reporter: Health Agency to consider Juneteenth holiday in future