Although most governmental agencies, schools, and some private companies celebrate the Martin Luther King Jr. birthday holiday as a paid-time off holiday, many employers have not adopted this policy.

Instead, a growing number of businesses have joined a movement to make the Martin Luther King holiday a "national day of service," according to the Corporation for National and Community Service. The idea for a day of service has been expanding since 1994, when Congress first passed legislation encouraging American to honor Dr. King by engaging in service on his holiday, says a Corporation statement.

More than 500,000 Americans took part in last year's day of service in approximately 5,000 projects. The official website for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service is www.mlkday.gov, which provides resources to assist employers with organizing a day of service.

Senior leadership may want to encourage employees to get involved in their local communities by providing them with paid time off on the King holiday to volunteer. If a whole day is too costly for an organization, a half a day or a few hours of paid volunteer time may be doable.

The United Way website at www.liveunited.org/?id=986 is helpful. Type in your local zip code to find local United Way contact information and member organizations that will probably have volunteer opportunities. January 19, 2009 is the date for the next King observance.