“This past Thanksgiving, my employer gave me the day off but didn’t pay me for it. I was told only full-time employees get paid for stat holidays — I was working part-time. Then I found out part-timers who work at least 15 days in the month before the holiday are entitled to stat holiday pay. I told my employer. They agreed to pay me for Thanksgiving.”
– Omar, Vancouver
On a statutory holiday, eligible workers covered by the Employment Standards Act (see if you’re covered) are entitled to either:
the day off with pay (referred to as "statutory holiday pay"), or
extra pay for working on the holiday.
To be eligible for statutory holiday pay
To be eligible for statutory holiday pay, a worker must:
have been employed for at least 30 calendar days before the statutory holiday, and
have worked or earned wages for 15 of the 30 days before the statutory holiday.
Workers who have worked under an averaging agreement at any time in the 30 days before the holiday don’t have to meet the 15-day requirement.
How to calculate statutory holiday pay
An eligible worker who is given the day off on a statutory holiday is entitled to an average day’s pay. If the holiday falls on a regular day off, the worker is still entitled to be paid.
An average day’s pay is calculated by dividing total wages earned in the 30 days before the statutory holiday by the number of days worked. Total wages includes wages, commissions, statutory holiday pay, and vacation pay. It doesn’t include overtime pay.
For example, say you earned $2,000 in the 30 days before Canada Day. During that period, you worked 20 days. Your average day’s pay is:
$2,000 divided by 20 days = $100
You would get the day off work on Canada Day and be paid $100.
You may be entitled to a paid vacation
In addition to statutory holidays, you may also be entitled to a paid annual vacation. See our information on taking a vacation.