Employee BenefitsTime Off and Leaves
Alameda County provides employees with a range of time-away-from work opportunities, including paid holidays, vacation time and paid or unpaid leaves of absence. This section provides details on our various programs.
Holidays
The County observes the following holidays:
- New Year's Day
- Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday
- Lincoln's Birthday
- Washington's Birthday
- Memorial Day
- Junteenth Day
- Independence Day
- Labor Day
- Veteran's Day
- Thanksgiving
- Friday after Thanksgiving
- Christmas Day
In addition, most employees receive up to four floating holidays each year. You must be hired before July 1 to be eligible; if hired after July 1, you are not eligible until the following calendar year. This benefit is pro-rated for part-time employees.
Note: Refer to your Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or the Administrative Code for your eligibility and your floating holiday maximum per year.
Vacation
Most County employees accrue vacation time on the following schedule:
| Years of Employment | Vacation Accrued |
|---|---|
| First 4 years | 2 weeks |
| 5 to 11 years | 3 weeks |
| 12 to 20 years | 4 weeks |
| Over 20 years | 5 weeks |
Refer to your Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for your eligibility and your vacation accrual maximums.
Vacation Purchase Program
The County's Vacation Purchase Program offers eligible employees the opportunity to purchase an additional one week or two weeks of vacation through payroll deductions. You make this election during the annual Open Enrollment period.
Your eligibility to purchase vacation during Open Enrollment is based on your vacation purchase plan balance as of a specific eligibility cut-off date each year (announced prior to Open Enrollment). Here�s how this works:
Vacation Purchase Program Eligibility
| Vacation Purchase Plan Balance as of Annual Eligibility Cut-Off Date | Eligibility to Purchase Vacation |
|---|---|
| 5.1 days or more | You are ineligible to purchase for the coming Benefit Plan Year |
| 0.1 to 5.0 days | Purchase 1 week |
| 0 days | Purchase 1 week to 2 weeks |
The cost to purchase additional vacation is based on your pay. Your contributions toward the program are deducted from your pay in equal increments on a pre-tax basis throughout the year. Note, if you experience a pay rate change during the Benefit Plan Year (e.g. resulting from a promotion or job change), your total annual cost will not be adjusted.
Vacation purchase hours are not considered eligible service hours towards retirement.
Refer to your Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for your eligibility to participate in this program and to clearly understand how the Vacation Purchase Program works. There have been recent changes that make Vacation Purchase hours subject to the same parameters as leave without pay hours.