Federal employees are getting their Christmas list done a little early this year.

A petition started on the White House's "We the People" website Monday asks President Barack Obama to give federal workers an extra holiday on Friday, Dec. 26 as a "good gesture to improve morale of the federal workforce."

"Federal employees have dealt with pay freezes and furloughs over the past few years," petition organizers note in asking for the four-day weekend.

Time off around the Christmas holidays has been handled different ways by different presidents. President Obama provided a full day off on Monday, Dec. 24, 2012 and a half-day off on Dec. 24, 2009. President George W. Bush gave federal workers Friday off in 2003 and 2008, the last two times Christmas fell on a Thursday.

Obama did not give federal workers any extra time off last year when Christmas fell on a Wednesday. The president usually announces his decision in December.

The petition still has a long way to go, however, if federal workers are hoping to be home Dec. 26. It needs 100,000 signatures to receive White House comment; as of Tuesday night it had 73 signatures.