Central Health changes paid holiday structure for employees, nixing 3 starting in 2026

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Changes are coming next year for Central Health employees' paid holidays.

Central Health -- Travis County’s taxpayer-funded hospital district -- confirmed via email Tuesday that it will implement a "unified holiday and wellbeing schedule" across its entire system, including CommUnityCare and Sendero. That new schedule goes into effect January 2026.

The affected holidays are Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Juneteenth and Veterans Day. They will no longer be designated paid days off.

Instead, all staff will receive one floating holiday and one "wellness day," which a Central Health spokesperson said may be used at the employee's discretion.

The change comes after "many months of thoughtful planning and collaboration across Central Health, CommUnityCare, and Sendero," the email stated. "We are not three separate organizations—we are one system, united by a shared mission: to improve the health of our community with dignity, equity, and respect."

According to the email, employees across the system have had different paid holiday schedules, with CommUnityCare staff receiving fewer paid holidays than staff members at Central Health and Sendero.

The new schedule was implemented with the goal to "improve access to care, especially on days when patients with complex health and social needs cannot afford to wait," and it will "help ensure consistent staffing and access to care on holidays and throughout the year, while also recognizing employee wellbeing," according to the email.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Juneteenth and Veterans Day were the last three holidays added by Central Health and were never formally observed at CommUnityCare, according to Central Health.

Central Health added that, while the three will no longer be system-wide paid holidays, the organization will "remain committed to honoring their meaning and the values they represent," and "encourages our employees to find ways to reflect, volunteer, or recognize these days as part of our ongoing commitment to justice, equity, and service."

KXAN asked Central Health if the change was influenced in any way by President Trump's ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in the federal workplace that was implemented earlier this year, since they are similar to the holidays affected by that order.

Central Health said it was not, and that those specific holidays were chosen because they were the last three added to Central Health and were already not in observance at CommUnityCare. Central Health added that the change is "not a reflection of any external political changes."