
President Donald Trump delivered an early gift to the federal workforce, signing an executive order that effectively grants a five-day weekend to hundreds of thousands of government employees. The order, signed last Thursday, designates both Wednesday, Dec. 24, and Friday, Dec. 26, as federal holidays for 2025.
While the move is a boon for morale within the executive branch—closing nonessential agencies from Christmas Eve through the following Sunday—it creates a complex patchwork of operating hours for the private sector and quasi-governmental services.