Detailed stat holiday info for Canadian businesses: Labour Day

While the way you spend your Labour Day – the last statutory holiday of the summer! – is up to you, adherance to the legislative components that surround it is a must-do for your to-do list. If you have a team to manage or a business to run, we have the info to help guide you to ensure your payroll is compliant.

What is Labour Day?

Labour Day takes place each year on the first Monday in September. It’s also one of the five statutory holidays recognized in all provinces and territories across Canada.

Like all statutory holidays, Labour Day is subject to specific banking and payroll legislation in which the parameters for employee eligibility, holiday pay and more pay can differ between jurisdictions. Canadian employers have to navigate this legislation based on where they and their employees are located, which is why we’re taking a closer look at the legislation for this statutory holiday by province and territory…

Federal

No surprises here: Labour Day’s Canada-wide recognition includes the federal government and federally-regulated workplaces. It’s important for Canadian employers to be aware of federal statutory holidays because they impact and change both their payroll processing and pay dates, regardless of the jurisdiction in which their business is located. This is because Payments Canada, the organization responsible for payment clearing and settlement, is federally regulated and as such observes the Labour Day statutory holiday.

For a list of federally-regulated workplaces, visit: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/jobs/workplace/federally-regulated-industries.html.

British Columbia (BC)

Labour Day is a statutory holiday in BC. Eligible employees receive statutory pay whether they work on Labour Day or not. For more info on statutory holidays in BC, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/employment-standards-advice/employment-standards/statutory-holidays.

Alberta

Labour Day is a general holiday in the Province of Alberta, where eligible employees are to be paid for working on or in lieu of this day. For more info on general holidays in the province, visit: https://www.alberta.ca/alberta-general-holidays#jumplinks-2.

Saskatchewan

Labour Day is a public holiday in Saskatchewan, where eligible employees either receive the day off with pay or businesses can remain open with employees receiving pay for working a public holiday. For more info on public holidays in the province, visit: https://www.saskatchewan.ca/business/employment-standards/public-statutory-holidays/list-of-saskatchewan-public-holidays.

Manitoba

Labour Day is a general holiday in Manitoba, where most employees with receive general holiday pay whether they’re working or not. For more info on general holidays in the province, visit: https://www.gov.mb.ca/labour/standards/doc,gen-holidays-after-april-30-07,factsheet.html#q12.

Ontario

Labour Day is a public holiday in Ontario, where eligible employees will generally receive the day off and be paid public holiday pay. For more info on public holidays in the province, visit: https://www.ontario.ca/document/your-guide-employment-standards-act-0/public-holidays.

Québec

Labour Day is a paid statutory holiday in Québec, where eligible employees are to receive the day off and an indemnity. For more info on statutory holidays in Québec, visit: https://www.cnesst.gouv.qc.ca/en/working-conditions/leave/statutory-holidays/list-paid-statutory-holidays.

Newfoundland and Labrador (NL)

Labour Day is a public holiday in NL, where the differing parameters of the two employee eligibility requirements dictate what eligible employees are entitled to receive. For more info on public holidays in the province, visit: https://www.gov.nl.ca/ecc/files/Publications_Labour_Relations_At_Work_Updates_October-2022.pdf.

New Brunswick (NB)

Labour Day is a paid public holiday in NB. For more info on paid public holidays in the province, visit: https://www2.gnb.ca/content/dam/gnb/Departments/petl-epft/PDF/es/FactSheets/PublicHolidaysVacation.pdf.

Nova Scotia

Labour Day is a paid holiday in Nova Scotia; it’s also designated as a retail closing day in the province. For more info on paid holidays in Nova Scotia, visit: https://novascotia.ca/lae/employmentrights/holidaychart.asp.

Prince Edward Island (PEI)

Labour Day is a paid holiday in PEI. For more info on paid holidays in the province, visit: https://www.princeedwardisland.ca/en/information/workforce-advanced-learning-and-population/paid-holidays.

Yukon

Labour Day is a statutory holiday in the Yukon, where eligible employees receive a day off with holiday pay. For more info on statutory holidays in the territory, visit: https://yukon.ca/en/find-yukon-statutory-holiday.

Northwest Territories

Labour Day is a statutory holiday in the Northwest Territories. For more info on statutory holidays in the territory, visit: https://my.hr.gov.nt.ca/employees/leave-time/statutory-holidays.

Nunavut

Labour Day is a general holiday in Nunavut. For more info on the territory’s general holidays, visit: https://www.nu-lsco.ca/faq-s.

Did you find this consolidated Labour Day statutory holiday legislation list helpful? If so, you’ll want to download your free copy of Payworks’ Payroll Guide. It’s a handy resource that helps Canadian businesses stay up-to-date all year round when it comes to navigating federal and provincial holidays, bank closures, and much more: https://www.payworks.ca/landing-pages/campaigns/payroll-guide.