Ontario's statutory holiday rules were amended as of January 1st 2018, and though employee eligibility has remained the same, the method of Ontario's statutory holiday calculations have been changed. Let's get you up to date on everything you need to know about stat holidays in Ontario!
Ontario observes nine statutory holidays throughout the year where employees are eligible to be off work with statutory holiday pay or work with premium holiday pay or time off in lieu. Read on to find out the ins and outs of the statutory holidays, how to calculate employee holiday pay, and other rules you might not be aware of.
In addition to these nine holidays, employers should be aware of Civic Holiday (First Monday in August), Truth and Reconciliation Day (September 30th), and Remembrance Day (November 11th). These dates are not statutory holidays in Ontario, but some employers voluntarily observe the day. Most provincially regulated businesses still operate on these days and are not required to give holiday pay. Also, Ontario is the only province in Canada that recognizes Boxing Day, December 26th, as a statutory holiday which can cause some confusion for businesses that operate across provinces.
*If Canada Day falls on a Sunday, the following Monday is observed as the statutory holiday. It gets “bumped” to July 2nd, but this doesn’t happen again until July 2029, so you’ve got time.
Although Family Day is not a national statutory holiday, it is a stat holiday in Ontario. Lucky you! Family day is only observed in New Brunswick, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia. It falls on the third Monday of February.
Yes, Victoria Day is a federal statutory holiday, which means Ontario employees are eligible to be off work with statutory holiday pay or work with premium holiday pay or time off in lieu.
Victoria Day celebrates Queen Victoria's birthday, May 24, 1819. It was originally declared a holiday by the Legislature of the Province of Canada in 1845. After her death in 1901, an Act was passed by the Parliament of Canada establishing a legal holiday on May 24 each year (or May 25 if May 24 fell on a Sunday) under the name Victoria Day. An amendment to the Statutes of Canada in 1952 established the celebration of Victoria Day on the Monday preceding May 25. In 2024 Victoria Day will be celebrated on Monday, May 20, 2024.
Although national Truth and Reconciliation Day is not considered a provincial statutory holiday in Ontario, anyone who works for a federally regulated company that operates under the Canada Labour Code will receive a paid holiday for National Truth and Reconciliation Day. This year the holiday falls on Monday, September 30, 2024.
Labour Day is celebrated in Canada on the first Monday of September as a federal statutory holiday, meaning it is a paid holiday. It is also observed in the United States.
Employees who qualify for stat holiday pay must be paid their overtime holiday pay rates. To be eligible for stat holiday pay in Ontario, employees simply have to follow the "first and last" rule. There are no restrictions on how long an employee has worked for an employer.
Let us explain...
To be eligible for statutory holiday pay in Ontario, employees must follow the "first and last" rule. This means that employees must work their last regularly scheduled shift before the holiday as well as their first regularly scheduled shift after the holiday, unless they have permission by their employer to miss their shift. Failure to work the entire shift without reasonable cause may result in disqualification of holiday pay.
However, if Joe's request is not accepted, and he does not show up, then he will no longer receive stat pay for the holiday closure.
They sure do! All full-time and part-time employees are eligible to receive stat pay if they worked their last regularly scheduled shift before the holiday and their first regularly scheduled shift after the holiday. This is known as the "first and last" rule.
Most employees are entitled to public holiday pay. Public holiday pay would be calculated by adding up the number of hours your employee has worked in the 4 work weeks prior to the holiday (including vacation pay, but not overtime) and divide that by 20. This is the amount of holiday pay they would receive for that day.
The four weeks before the public holiday is based on the employer’s work week. For example, instead of a Monday to Sunday work week, it could be a Sunday to Saturday work week.
Here's an example: In the last 4 weeks, Peter is paid $16.55/hour and worked 30 hours. He also worked his last scheduled shift before the holiday and will be working the first shift after. This means he is eligible for both regular stat pay and premium stat pay should he be scheduled for the day.
In total, Peter will be paid $25.82 in regular statutory pay, even if he does not work the holiday.
In addition to Ontario stat holiday pay, employees who work on the day of the statutory holiday are also entitled to either:
OR
You, as the employer chooses which of these options will apply.
Last pay period, Jane is paid $16.55/hour and works four 8 hour shifts. She also works an 8 hour shift on a stat holiday. She is eligible for both regular and premium stat pay. As she also worked her last scheduled shift before the holiday, and will be working the first shift after, she is eligible for both regular and premium stat pay.
To calculate her total stat pay:
PLUS
Can you imagine how much time you would save if you could automate your holiday pay calculations? Well you can.
Push Operations has created smart software that integrates with your staffing back end to automatically calculate stat holiday pay while scheduling and paying staff. Payroll and holiday pay calculations are done at the click of a button.
For further information on automating Ontario statutory holiday calculations connect with a helpful team member at Push today to get started with the software!
This document is provided by Push Technologies Inc. ("Push Operations") for information purposes only. This is not an official or legal document and should not be taken as legal advice. Push Operations does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy or completeness of the information provided. For the most accurate and up-to-date information, please check with the proper governing authority on Ontario stat holidays in 2024.
“In the labor numbers, we were reporting about a $300 to $400 difference than what we were getting through Push!”
-Tara Hardie, ZZA Hospitality Group, 16 locations
