Ontario Statutory Holiday Pay: A Guide for 2024

Understanding how statutory, or public, holiday pay works in Ontario is essential for both employers and employees. This guide provides a straightforward overview of the rules for public holiday pay in Ontario for provincially regulated employees, for the year 2024.

What is Public Holiday Pay?

Public holiday pay is the compensation that provincially regulated employees are entitled to receive for being off work on a public holiday in Ontario. The Employment Standards Act (ESA) sets out the requirements for public holiday pay.

Eligibility for Public Holiday Pay

To be eligible for public holiday pay in Ontario, an employee must:

• Have worked their last regularly scheduled workday before the holiday and their first regularly scheduled workday after the holiday (unless they have reasonable cause for missing work). This is called the last and first rule.
• Have worked for their employer for at least 30 days in the preceding 12 months.

Calculating Public Holiday Pay

As of 2024, the formula for calculating public holiday pay in Ontario is:

Public Holiday Pay = (Total Regular Wages Earned + Vacation Pay Payable in the 4 Work Weeks Prior to the Holiday) / 20

This formula applies to most employees, including full-time, part-time, permanent, and contract workers.

Substitute Holidays and Premium Pay

In Ontario, employees who work on a public holiday can choose between:

• Receiving premium pay, which is 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for hours worked (time and a half), plus public holiday pay.
• Regular pay plus a substitute holiday.

A substitute holiday is a working day mutually agreed upon by the employee and employer to replace the public holiday. Employers must provide written confirmation detailing the public holiday being replaced, the date of the substitute holiday, and the date of the agreement.

Need to Know the Specific Public Holiday Dates in Ontario?

Now that you’re familiar with the rules for statutory holiday pay in Ontario, you might be interested in the exact dates for these holidays. Check out our comprehensive list for 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Do I Get Public Holiday Pay if I’m Dismissed?

Yes. Employers in Ontario are legally obligated to provide non-unionized workers with their public holiday pay if they are fired or let go.

• Example: Jane worked on Thanksgiving and her employer said she could take a substitute holiday on December 10th. However, the company decides to let Jane go before she is able to use her substitute holiday. Her employer must provide her with her public holiday pay in addition to her severance entitlements.

Terminations and Stat Holidays

If you’ve been fired without cause or for cause before or after taking a public holiday it’s crucial to understand your rights through a consultation with an Ontario employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP immediately.

Do not accept any severance offer, termination papers, or exit agreement from your employer, even if they come with a deadline. These deadlines are pressure tactics used to push you into accepting inadequate compensation. Once you sign and return these documents, you forfeit your ability to negotiate a fair and proper severance package. A full severance package can be as much as 24 months’ pay.

Talk To an Employment Lawyer

The knowledgeable employment law team at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP has helped tens of thousands of non-unionized individuals across the country.

In addition to severance package negotiations, we have experience securing solutions for the following employment matters:

Our lawyers in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C. stand ready to help you solve your workplace issues.

If you are a non-unionized employee who needs help with an employment issue, contact us or call 1-855-821-5900 to get the advice you need, and the compensation you deserve.