Holidays in Canada

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(Redirected from Canadian statutory holiday)

Canadian national holidays (with provincial exceptions):

date English name French name remarks
January 1 New Year's Day Nouvel an Statutory.
Friday before Easter Sunday Good Friday vendredi saint Statutory. Acknowledges the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, traditionally on 3 April, 33 AD; see Good Friday article for details.
Day after Easter Sunday Easter Monday Pâques Celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, traditionally on 5 April, 33 AD; see Easter article for details.
Monday preceding May 25 Victoria Day fête de la Reine Statutory. Celebration of the birthday of the current British (and, by extension, Canadian) monarch. In Quebec, Victoria Day and fête des patriotes (Commemoration of the Lower Canada Rebellion) are celebrated on the same day.
July 1 Canada Day fête du Canada Statutory. Commemoration of Canada's 1867 Confederation.
First Monday in September Labour Day fête du travail Statutory.
Second Monday in October Thanksgiving action de grâce Statutory. A Day of general thanks for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed. (Note: Thanksgiving is not celebrated on the same day as it is in the U.S.)
November 11 Remembrance Day jour du souvenir Commemoration of Canada's war veterans.
December 25 Christmas Noël Statutory. Celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ; traditionally 25 December 1 BC.
December 26 Boxing Day lendemain de Noël Statutory. Day when shops sell off excess Christmas inventory.

Each province of Canada has its own provincial holiday or holidays. The include St. Jean Baptiste Day in Quebec, Natal Day in PEI and Nova Scotia and Discovery Day in Newfoundland and Labrador and Yukon. Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Ontario, and Saskatchewan have civic holidays on the first Monday in August. In British Columbia it is called B.C. Day, while in Ontario, it is named differently in each city. In Toronto it is Simcoe Day (August 1, civic holiday) while in Ottawa it is Colonel By Day, for instance. Alberta celebrates Family Day on the third Monday of February.

Although not official holidays, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, and Hallowe'en are traditionally celebrated by Canadians.

The observance of individuals' religious holidays is widely accepted (see multiculturalism). For example, some school children and employees take days off for Jewish holidays, or Eastern Orthodox observances according to the Julian calendar.

Contents

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Statutory holidays

A statutory holiday (also known as "general" or "public" holiday) in Canada is legislated either through the federal, provincial, or territorial governments. Most workers, public or private, are entitled to take the day off with regular pay. However, for businesses that are normally open employers may require employees to work on such a holiday but in this case, must be paid at a premium rate -- usually 1½ (known as "time and a half") or 2 times the regular pay. In most provinces, when a statutory holiday falls on a normal day off (generally a weekend), the following work day is considered a statutory holiday.

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Federal

There are 9 statutory holidays mandated by federal legislation and are only applicable to federally regulated employees. All banks applied these holidays to their schedule These are as follows:

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Provincial and territorial

Provinces and territories generally adopt the same holidays as the federal government with some variations:

  • Alberta - 9 holidays
    • Boxing Day is not a statutory holiday.
    • Family Day - third Monday in February
    • Heritage Day - first Monday of August
  • British Columbia - 9 holidays
    • Boxing Day is not a statutory holiday.
    • BC Day - first Monday in August
  • Manitoba - 7 holidays
    • Thanksgiving is a statutory holiday. Remembrance Day, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays, although only the Retail Sector is open on these days within specific regulatory guidelines for hours of service.
    • Remembrance Day is not termed a statutory holiday, but rather an "Official day of Observance", and must be paid overtime if required to work on this day. Most Manitobans, with the exception of the retail sector, get the day off.
  • New Brunswick - 7 holidays
    • Victoria Day, Thanksgiving, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays.
    • New Brunswick Day - first Monday in August
  • Newfoundland - 6 holidays
  • Northwest Territories - 10 holidays
  • Nova Scotia - 6 holidays (including Remembrance Day; see below)
    • Victoria Day, Thanksgiving, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays.
    • Remembrance Day is a special case and employers have the option of giving Remembrance Day or an alternate day off.
    • Natal Day - First Monday in August is not a statutory holiday but a common day off.
  • Nunavut - 9 holidays
    • Boxing Day is not a statutory holiday.
    • First Monday in August.
  • Prince Edward Island - 6 holidays
    • Victoria Day, Thanksgiving, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays.
  • Ontario - 8 holidays
    • Remembrance Day is not a statutory holiday in Ontario.
    • Although not a statutory holiday, municipalities may designate the first Monday in August as a civic holiday. This is called Simcoe Day in Toronto, and Colonel By Day in Ottawa.
  • Quebec - 8 holidays
    • Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays.
    • Victoria Day coincides with Fête des Patriotes.
    • Employers may choose whether Good Friday or Easter Monday is the holiday.
    • Fête Nationale (St. John the Baptist’s Day) - June 24
    • Many of the specific details of employment law are quite different in Quebec.
  • Saskatchewan - 9 holidays
    • Saskatchewan Day - first Monday in August
  • Yukon - 9 holidays
    • Boxing Day is not a holiday in Yukon.
    • Discovery Day - third Monday in August

Many employers give their employees days off that may not be statutory holidays in the particular province, particularly Boxing Day. Similarly, many federally regulated employees have negotiated additional holidays, that are common holidays in the provinces such that many also take Easter Monday and the first Monday in August.

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Civic holidays

In Canada, there are two definitions to the term "civic holiday":

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Legal definition

By law, a civic holiday is defined as any holiday which is legally recognized but where the employer is not obliged to offer holiday pay. For example, in Alberta Christmas is a statutory holiday where employees are entitled to holiday pay, but Boxing Day is a civic holiday and employers do not have to provide holiday pay. Second, the term can also refer to the holiday

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The August holiday

Another common definition of the civic holiday refers to a particular annual holiday, celebrated on the first Monday of August in most Canadian provinces. However, this definition is far from uniform nationwide. Two provinces and one territory do not recognize it at all, and five other provinces do not oblige employers to offer holiday pay on this day, thus making it a civic holiday in the legal sense. This leaves only three provinces and two territories where the first Monday in August is a full statutory holiday and employers are obliged to pay their employees holiday pay.

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Jurisdictions with a statutory holiday on the first Monday of August

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Jurisdictions with a civic holiday on the first Monday of August

1 — Alberta employers can opt out of the Family Day holiday in February. If they do, they must treat the August holiday as a statutory holiday.
2 — Some Ontario municipalities have a specific name for the holiday.
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Jurisdictions with no holiday on the first Monday of August

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Proposed holidays

In recent years there has been a call for the Canadian government to recognize St. Patrick's Day as a national holiday. Currently it is an official holiday only in Newfoundland and Labrador. This proposal has been promoted by the Guinness corporation.

The other leading candidate for a new holiday is a weekend in February to celebrate the anniversary of the Canadian flag, or more likely a general "Heritage Day". February 15 is already designated as National Flag of Canada Day, but this is simply a day of commemoration, not a statutory holiday.

The major Canadian breweries have long lobbied for a holiday in June.

Some Canadians believe that the country does not have enough holidays (in comparison to the United States and the United Kingdom, and although these nations have about the same number of nationally recognized holidays, they generally receive more days off work and school). Proposals for more work holidays are strongly opposed by many employers, however.

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Other observances

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
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References

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External links

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