Every Statutory Holiday In Quebec & How Much You Should Get Paid For Them
It's a new year with many long weekends ahead. 😉
Canada Day (also known as Moving Day) in Montreal.
Most Montrealers are already back at work after a well-deserved December break. You can fight off the winter blues and start thinking about your 2023 weekend road trips and getaways now. Often, a little planning goes a long way.
Here is everything you need to know about statutory holidays in Quebec, how they differ from federal public holidays, and what happens if you have to work on one of those days (yuck).
What is a statutory holiday?
Statutory holidays are public holidays that are designated paid days off work, depending on your job and province of residence.
In Quebec, the CNESST explains, someone who earns a wage and gets a statutory holiday pay (indemnity) equal to 1/20 of the total amount they were paid over the previous four full weeks of work, excluding overtime but including tips.
It's slightly different for employees who are paid on commission: 1/60 of the total pay earned in the 12 full weeks before the holiday, according to the CNESST.
These special days can't be moved. Meaning, the CNESST continues, an employer can't have their staff working on a statutory holiday and close the business another day instead.
What are the statutory holidays in Quebec?
Quebec has eight statutory holidays. Many are on a Friday or Monday this year, giving employees some opportunities to extend their time off.
Here's the full list of statutory holidays in Quebec:
- New Year's Day, January 1
- Good Friday or Easter Monday (the employer decides which day)
- National Patriots’ Day, observed on the Monday before May 25
- The Fête nationale, June 24
- Canada Day, July 1
- Labour Day, observed on the first Monday in September
- Thanksgiving, observed on the second Monday in October
- Christmas Day, December 25
What are Canada public holidays that aren't statutory holidays in Quebec?
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Remembrance Day and Boxing Day are federal public holidays that are not statutory holidays in Quebec.
This means that, in Quebec, only employees in the federal bureaucracy, Crown corporations and federally-regulated industries get those days off with pay.
What happens if you work on a statutory holiday in Quebec?
If your employer asks you to work on a statutory holiday, they have to make alternative arrangements in addition to paying you your full regular pay for the day.
Your boss must either give you an indemnity or designate another paid day you get off. Except for the Fête nationale, that alternative day off, the CNESST says, has to be within the three weeks before or after the actual holiday. An alternative day off for the Fête nationale must be on the first workday before or after the actual holiday.
