Kelly day
n.— «Kelly days: This term refers to one shift off with pay every 14th shift for all employees who work 24-hour shifts. Northwest firefighters work a 24-hour shift, followed by 48 hours off.» —“Firefighters’ union, county begin talks on district contract” by Charlotte Sutton in Brooksville St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Aug. 28, 1987. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
As we’ve previously discussed, firefighters don and dofftheir equipment, terms deriving from do on and do off. They are also said to dout a fire, meaning they “extinguish” it, dout being a similar shortening of do out. This is part...
What do you call a long sandwich filled with lots of ingredients? Whether you call it a sub, a hoagie, a grinder, or something else entirely depends on where you’re from. And: Martha’s visit to an Alaskan reindeer ranch reveals why you...