Happy Birthday, Mr President(s)

Each year, America celebrates a holiday on the third Monday in February. And that’s as far as we get before encountering controversy.

We added this light-hearted video to highlight the confusion about the name of this holiday as it feels like there has been an increasing number of conversations about whether the holiday is called Washington’s Birthday or Presidents’ Day.

There is no confusion about the Federal holiday; that is Washington’s Birthday. The problem is that each state is free to name the day as they see fit. This is an opportunity that they grasp with both hands.

We have gone through each state and noted the official name of the holiday. The chart below shows the variety of names.

The problem with this confusion is that it dilutes the importance of the holiday. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 19% of private workers observe this day as a holiday. Despite its status as a Federal holiday and a State holiday in 38 states, only 58% of public sector workers get the day off.

• President’s Day by State
• Washington’s Birthday/Presidents’ Day in the USA