Public holidays in Canada

Public holidays in Canada, known as "statutory holidays", "stat holidays", or simply "stats", are legislated at the federal, provincial and territorial levels. Many of these holidays are observed nationwide, but each province and territory in Canada has its own holidays as well.

While major Christian holidays such as Christmas and Good Friday are officially observed, leave is permitted for other religious holidays as well. For example, some school children and employees take days off for Jewish holidays, Muslim holidays, or Eastern Orthodox observances according to the Julian calendar. While not normally taken off work, Valentine's Day, Saint Patrick's Day, Halloween, Mother's Day, and Father's Day are traditionally observed by Canadians. The Celebrate Canada series is a collection of important cultural days beginning with National Aboriginal Day on June 21, and followed by S^t-Jean Baptiste Day on June 24, Canadian Multiculturalism Day on June 27, and concluding with Canada Day on July 1.

Currently, the provinces of Alberta and Prince Edward Island have the most days off of any other provinces and territories, with 12 days off.

Statutory holidays

A statutory holiday (also known as "stats" or "general" or "public" holiday) in Canada is legislated either through the federal, or a provincial or territorial government. Most workers, public and private, are entitled to take the day off with regular pay. However, some employers may require employees to work on such a holiday, but the employee must either receive a day off in lieu of the holiday or must be paid at a premium rate â€" usually 1Â½ (known as "time and a half") or twice (known as "double time") the regular pay for their time worked that day, in addition to the holiday pay (except for high technology workers in British Columbia). 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. Statistics Canada shows an average of 11 paid statutory holidays per year in regard to all firms and corporations operating within the province.

Nationwide statutory holidays in Canada

Statutory holidays for federal employees

In addition to the nationwide holidays listed above, the following holidays are mandated by federal legislation for federally regulated employees. All banks commemorate these holidays, and they are statutory in some provinces and territories.

Other common statutory holidays

Provincial and territorial holidays

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

Alberta

5 nationwide statutory holidays, 4 provincial holidays as well as 3 "optional holidays".

Provincial statutory

Alberta Family Day â€" third Monday in February
Victoria Day â€" the Monday preceding May 25
Thanksgiving - second Monday in October
Remembrance Day â€" November 11

Optional

Easter Monday â€" optional Holiday, variable date
Heritage Day â€" optional holiday, first Monday of August
Boxing Day â€" optional Holiday, December 26.

British Columbia

5 nationwide and 5 provincial statutory holidays.

Provincial statutory

Family Day â€" second Monday of February
Victoria Day â€" last Monday before or on May 24
British Columbia Day â€" first Monday of August
Thanksgiving â€" second Monday of October
Remembrance Day â€" November 11

Manitoba

5 nationwide and 3 provincial statutory holidays, as well as 2 optional holidays. Remembrance Day and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays.

Provincial statutory

Louis Riel Day â€" third Monday in February
Victoria Day â€" last Monday before May 25
Thanksgiving â€" second Monday in October

Optional

Civic Holiday â€" first Monday in August; not a statutory holiday.
Remembrance Day â€" an "Official day of Observance", not a statutory holiday.

New Brunswick

5 nationwide and 5 provincial statutory holidays. Although prescribed as public holidays, Victoria Day, Thanksgiving, and Boxing Day are not paid public holidays.

Provincial statutory

New Brunswick Day â€" first Monday in August
Remembrance Day â€" November 11

Optional

Victoria Day
Thanksgiving
Boxing Day

Newfoundland and Labrador

5 nationwide and 1 provincial statutory holiday. Thanksgiving is not a statutory holiday. Canada Day is not a statutory holiday as July 1 is Memorial Day.

Provincial statutory

Memorial Day (July 1)
Armistice Day (November 11)

Optional

Saint Patrick's Day (March 17)
Saint George's Day (April 23)
Discovery Day (June 24)
Orangemen's Day (July 12)

These have not been observed as statutory holidays since 1992. They are, however, observed by the provincial government. Unlike most other provinces, there is no province-wide holiday on the first Monday in August. It may be seen as redundant due to the Royal St. John's Regatta, which is observed as a civic holiday in St. John's on the first Wednesday in August (or, in case of poor weather, the next suitable day thereafter). Harbour Grace and Labrador City have a similar holiday for their regatta in late July. All other municipalities are entitled to designate one day a year as a civic holiday, however many do not take advantage of this.

Government Holidays - url=http://www.exec.gov.nl.ca/exec/hrs/working_with_us/holidays2014.html

Northwest Territories

5 nationwide holidays and 5 territorial statutory holidays.

Territorial statutory

Victoria Day
National Aboriginal Day â€" June 21
Civic Holiday â€" First Monday in August
Remembrance Day
Thanksgiving

Nova Scotia

5 nationwide holidays plus two provincial holidays. Victoria Day, Thanksgiving, and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays but most businesses and retail are closed Boxing Day. Most statutory holidays can be substituted for a mutually agreeable alternative paid day off in lieu or employers can require employees to work at a premium rate of pay. Several types of employment, including workplaces covered by a collective agreement, are exempt from provincial rules governing statutory holidays.

Provincial statutory

Heritage Day - This holiday is held on the third Monday of February as of 2015, and celebrates notable people, events and locations from the province's history. In 2015, Heritage Day celebrated Black Nova Scotian civil rights activist and businesswoman Viola Desmond.
Remembrance Day â€" This holiday is governed separately from all other public holidays in Nova Scotia as of 1998. It is illegal for any person to offer any goods or real property for sale on this date, or to accept or offer employment in exchange for gain or reward. There are special exemptions for workers who are employed in certain categories but an alternative day off with pay must be offered in lieu.

Optional

Natal Day â€" first Monday in August; not a statutory holiday but a common day off in Halifax Regional Municipality.

Nunavut

5 nationwide and 4 territorial statutory holidays. Boxing Day is not a statutory holiday.

Territorial statutory

Victoria Day
Civic Holiday â€" first Monday in August.
Thanksgiving
Remembrance Day

Optional

Nunavut Day â€" July 9, originated as a paid holiday for Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated and regional Inuit associations. It became a Â½ day holiday for Government employees in 1999 and a full day in 2001. Most employers give the day off with the notable exceptions being the Federal Government and the North West Company. Not a statutory holiday.

Ontario

5 nationwide and 4 provincial statutory holidays plus one common municipal holiday.

Provincial statutory

Family Day â€" third Monday in February.
Victoria Day â€" on the Monday before May 25
Thanksgiving
Boxing Day

Optional

August Civic Public Holiday â€" first Monday in August. This is not a statutory holiday, and, as such, only federal employers are required to give the day off.
Remembrance Day â€" This is also not a Paid Public (Stat) Holiday and as such provincially regulated employers are not required to treat this as a holiday.

Prince Edward Island

5 nationwide and 7 provincial statutory holidays (Gold Cup Parade Day may be substituted for Civic Holiday for some workers).

Provincial statutory

Islander Day â€" third Monday in February (originally second).
Easter Monday
Victoria Day
Civic Holiday â€" first Monday in August (Federal government only)
Thanksgiving Day
Remembrance Day
Boxing Day

Optional

Gold Cup Parade Day celebrated mainly in the capital city of Charlottetown on the third Friday in August marking the end of the Provincial Exhibition and the Gold Cup and Saucer race at the Charlottetown Driving Park, which is a bank and contract holiday for some Civil Servants (others get the first Monday of August as a Civic Holiday).

Quebec

Five nationwide and three provincial statutory holidays. Remembrance Day and Boxing Day are not statutory holidays, and there is no Civic Holiday in August. Many of the specific details of employment law are quite different in Quebec.
Employers must give either Good Friday or Easter Monday as a statutory holiday, though some give both days.

Provincial statutory

National Patriots' Day (French: JournÃ©e nationale des patriotes) coincides with Victoria Day.
National Holiday (French: FÃªte nationale du QuÃ©bec) on June 24 coincides with the Midsummer (St. John the Baptist Day).
Thanksgiving (French: Action de grÃ¢ce)

Optional

Construction Holiday (French: Vacances de la construction) takes place during the last two weeks of July and also the last two weeks of December for Christmas holidaysÂ â€" while it applies officially only to the construction industry, many other Quebecers arrange to take their vacations during these two weeks.

Saskatchewan

5 nationwide and 5 provincial statutory holidays.

Provincial statutory

Family Day â€" third Monday in February
Victoria Day
Saskatchewan Day â€" first Monday in August. Celebration of Saskatchewan history and culture similar to Canada Day.
Thanksgiving
Remembrance Day

Yukon

5 nationwide and 4 territorial statutory holidays. In addition, Easter Monday, Boxing Day, and Heritage Day are statutory for public service workers. Many employers give their employees days off that may not be statutory holidays in the particular province, particularly Boxing Day.

Territorial statutory

Victoria Day
Discovery Day â€" third Monday in August
Thanksgiving
Remembrance Day

Optional

Heritage Day â€" Friday before the last Sunday in February â€" optional for non-public service workers

Municipal holidays

Some municipalities also have local statutory holidays. For instance, the morning of the Stampede Parade is often given as a half-day holiday in the city of Calgary. In Ontario, the August Civic Holiday is not defined provincially, but by each municipality.

Civic holidays

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

Legal definition

By law, a civic holiday is defined as any holiday which is legally recognized and for which employers are obliged to offer holiday pay.

The August Civic Holiday

In parts of Canada, the term "Civic Holiday" is a generic name referring to the annual holiday on the first Monday of August. However, this definition is far from uniform nationwide as Quebec, Newfoundland and Yukon do not recognize it at all. Five other provinces (Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island) do not oblige employers to offer holiday pay on this day, thus not making it a civic holiday in the legal sense. No universal name is recognized for this holiday â€" the official name varies between the provinces and even between municipalities within Ontario. In Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories it is a statutory holiday.

The Civic Holiday is meant to replace a city's birthday aka Natal Day. Instead of each city and town having a separate birthday celebration and day off the August Civic Holiday is observed. For example, the Halifax Regional Municipality is made up of former cities Halifax and Dartmouth and the town of Bedford. Each of these places used to hold civic birthday celebrations on different days. Many people lived in one jurisdiction but worked in another. This would be very confusing as to which day a person would be excused from work.

This holiday is commonly referred to as "August Long Weekend" but this is not a government term.

Proposed holidays

In recent years there has been a call for the Canadian government to recognize Saint Patrick's Day as a national holiday. Currently it is a holiday only for provincial government employees in Newfoundland and Labrador.

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 Flag Day, but this is simply a day of commemoration, not a statutory holiday.

In the province of Nova Scotia, which has relatively few days off, a bill has been introduced for a new holiday for the third Monday in February, to start in 2015.

In November 2014, Bill C-597 passed second reading in the House of Commons by a margin of 258 to 2. If the bill becomes law, Remembrance Day would become a federal holiday in Canada.

In 2001, members of the 14th Legislative Assembly passed the National Aboriginal Day Act making the Northwest Territories the first jurisdiction in Canada to recognize this day as a formal statutory holiday.

Holidays occurring on non-work days

If a holiday occurs on a day that is normally not worked, then "... another day off with pay will be provided." There are some exceptions, however. In Alberta, an employee is not entitled to compensation if a holiday falls on a non-work day.

When New Year's Day, Canada Day, Remembrance Day, Christmas Day or Boxing Day falls on a Saturday or Sunday you would not normally work, you are entitled to a holiday with pay on the working day immediately before or after the holiday. If one of the other holidays falls on a weekend, then your employer must add a holiday with pay to your annual vacation or give you a paid day off at another mutually convenient time.

Other observances

Raoul Wallenberg Day, January 17
Groundhog Day, February 2
Valentine's Day, February 14
National Flag of Canada Day, February 15
Commonwealth Day, the second Monday in March. This has been observed as a holiday in some Commonwealth countries.
Saint Patrick's Day, March 17
April Fool's Day, April 1
Tartan Day, April 6
Earth Day, April 22
Mother's Day, 2nd Sunday of May
Father's Day, 3rd Sunday of June
Loyalist Day, June 19, celebrating Canada's Loyalist heritage, particularly in Ontario and New Brunswick (also the day Upper Canada was created, now Ontario)
National Aboriginal Day, June 21 as part of the Celebrate Canada series
Canadian Multiculturalism Day, June 27 as part of the Celebrate Canada series
National Peacekeepers' Day, August 9 observed on the closest Sunday
National Grandparents' Day, 2nd Sunday in September
National Family Week, week before Thanksgiving
Halloween, October 31
National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, December 6

References

External links

Statutory Holidays in British Columbia
Statutory Holidays in Quebec
iCal Calendars found for â€˜Canadaâ€™ iCalShare
Overview of Canadian statutory holidays

Public holidays in Canada

Friday, July 17, 2015