Ontario Statutory Holidays 2026: The Nine Days That Bind Employers

Ontario employers deal with a holiday framework that looks simple on the surface but hides several traps. The province has nine public holidays under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA)—not the ten or eleven that employees often assume. Remembrance Day is not statutory in Ontario. The August Civic Holiday is not statutory either, despite most workplaces treating it like one.

2026 adds a specific complication: Boxing Day falls on a Saturday, triggering rules about substitute holidays that differ from what happens in other provinces. If you are planning payroll, setting deadlines, or advising clients on Ontario employment matters, these are the dates and rules that matter.

Ontario's nine public holidays for 2026

The ESA defines exactly nine public holidays. No more, no less.

That is the complete list. Everything else—Remembrance Day, Civic Holiday, Easter Monday, Truth and Reconciliation Day—is not a statutory public holiday in Ontario under the ESA.

The Boxing Day substitute holiday trap

Boxing Day 2026 falls on a Saturday. Under the ESA, when a public holiday falls on a day that is not ordinarily a working day for an employee, the employer is generally required to give the employee a substitute day off with public holiday pay. The substitute day is the default—the employer and employee would need a written or electronic agreement to choose the alternative arrangement of public holiday pay only with no substitute day.

What this means in practice:

• For employees who normally work Monday to Friday: Saturday is not a working day. The employer must provide a substitute day off with public holiday pay—typically Monday, December 28. To instead pay public holiday pay without a substitute day, the employer needs the employee's agreement in writing.

• For employees who normally work Saturdays: December 26 is their public holiday. They are entitled to the day off with public holiday pay, or if they work, premium pay plus a substitute day or premium pay plus public holiday pay for the day.

• For employers who close entirely between Christmas and New Year's: If the workplace is closed on Boxing Day anyway, the employee still has an entitlement. The public holiday does not disappear because the business is shut.

The common mistake: Employers assume they can simply skip the substitute day because Boxing Day "already fell on a weekend." Under the ESA, when the holiday falls on a non-working day, the employee is entitled to a substitute day off with public holiday pay. The written agreement is needed to opt out of that substitute day, not to create one.

What is NOT a public holiday in Ontario

Remembrance Day (November 11)

Remembrance Day is not a statutory public holiday in Ontario. This surprises many people because it is statutory in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and federally.

In Ontario, November 11 is a day of remembrance, and there are restrictions on certain activities, but it is not a day off under the ESA. Employers are not required to give employees the day off or pay public holiday pay.

Many Ontario employers close anyway, either as a company policy or under collective agreements. But there is no ESA obligation.

Civic Holiday (First Monday in August)

The first Monday in August is called Civic Holiday, Simcoe Day (Toronto), Colonel By Day (Ottawa), or various other names depending on the municipality. It is widely observed, and most Ontario workplaces are closed.

But it is not a public holiday under the ESA.

This means:

• Employers are not legally required to give the day off
• There is no entitlement to public holiday pay
• Employees who work do not receive premium pay under the ESA

In practice, most employers treat Civic Holiday as a holiday, and many employment contracts and collective agreements include it. But someone relying on the ESA alone has no entitlement.

Easter Monday (April 6, 2026)

Good Friday is a public holiday. Easter Monday is not. Some employers grant both days, but only Good Friday creates an ESA obligation.

Truth and Reconciliation Day (September 30)

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is a federal statutory holiday, but Ontario has not adopted it as a provincial public holiday. September 30, 2026, is a regular working day under the ESA.

How Ontario holiday pay works

The ESA formula for public holiday pay is often misunderstood. It is not simply "a day's pay."

Public holiday pay calculation:

Public holiday pay equals the total amount of regular wages earned and vacation pay payable in the four work weeks before the work week with the public holiday, divided by 20.

This formula accounts for variable schedules and ensures part-time employees receive proportionate pay. An employee who works 20 hours per week does not receive the same public holiday pay as someone who works 40 hours.

Premium pay for working on a public holiday:

If an employee works on a public holiday and the employer and employee have not agreed to a substitute day, the employee receives:

• Public holiday pay, plus
• Premium pay of 1.5 times their regular rate for the hours worked

Alternatively, the employer and employee can agree in writing that the employee will receive:

• Their regular rate for hours worked, plus
• A substitute day off with public holiday pay, or
• Public holiday pay for the day plus premium pay for hours worked

The permutations matter. Getting them wrong creates compliance exposure.

Special rules for certain industries

Retail employees

The Retail Business Holidays Act restricts what retail establishments can do on certain holidays. On Christmas Day, most retail businesses must close. On other holidays (Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving, and Boxing Day), restrictions depend on the size of the retail establishment and the municipality.

These are separate from ESA public holiday entitlements. An employee might have the day off because the store is legally required to close, not because the ESA entitles them to it.

Continuous operations

Hospitals, utilities, hotels, and other continuous operations have employees who regularly work on public holidays. The ESA accommodates this through the premium pay and substitute day framework, but the administrative complexity increases when the workforce includes full-time, part-time, and casual employees with different regular schedules.

Federally regulated employees in Ontario

Banks, telecommunications companies, airlines, and interprovincial transportation are federally regulated. Their employees are covered by the Canada Labour Code, not the ESA. The federal holiday list is different—it includes Remembrance Day and does not include Civic Holiday or, currently, Family Day (though many federal employers in Ontario grant Family Day voluntarily).

A bank employee in Toronto does not have a statutory entitlement to Family Day. A provincial government employee in the same building does.

2026 calendar traps for Ontario employers

The mid-week Canada Day

Canada Day falls on Wednesday, July 1. There is no substitution to a Monday or Friday—Wednesday is the public holiday. Expect employees to request vacation on Monday-Tuesday or Thursday-Friday to create an extended break. Coverage planning becomes complicated.

The December complexity

• Friday, December 25: Christmas Day (public holiday)
• Saturday, December 26: Boxing Day (public holiday, substitute day owed)
• Sunday, December 27: Regular Sunday
• Monday, December 28: Likely substitute day for Boxing Day

Many employers close from December 24 through January 1. If so, communicate clearly which days are public holidays, which are company-granted closures, and which require employees to use vacation time. The difference matters for pay stubs and ESA compliance.

Family Day scheduling

Family Day (February 16) is a Monday, creating a standard long weekend. But remember that federally regulated employees and employees in Quebec-based operations of Ontario companies do not have this holiday.

Quick answers (FAQ)

Is Remembrance Day a statutory holiday in Ontario?

No. Remembrance Day is not a public holiday under the ESA. Employers are not required to give the day off or pay public holiday pay. Many employers observe it voluntarily, and some collective agreements include it, but there is no ESA entitlement.

Is Civic Holiday statutory in Ontario?

No. The first Monday in August (Civic Holiday, Simcoe Day, etc.) is not a public holiday under the ESA. Most employers observe it, but it is not legally required.

How is holiday pay calculated in Ontario?

Public holiday pay equals total regular wages and vacation pay earned in the four work weeks before the public holiday, divided by 20. This is not simply one day's pay—it is a formula that accounts for variable schedules.

What happens when Boxing Day falls on a Saturday?

For employees who do not normally work Saturdays, the employer must generally provide a substitute day off with public holiday pay—typically the following Monday. A written or electronic agreement between employer and employee is needed only if the employer wants to pay public holiday pay without providing a substitute day. The substitute day is the default, not the exception.

How the calculator handles Boxing Day 2026

The Working Day Calculator marks December 26, 2026 (Saturday) as Boxing Day—the actual statutory holiday date under the ESA. Since December 26 is already a Saturday, it is already a non-working day in standard mode.

Standard mode: The calculator marks the statutory date (December 26) but does not automatically add December 28 as a substitute. The ESA requires employers to provide a substitute day, but the specific date depends on the workplace—the statute does not fix it to the following Monday. The calculator cannot guess what each employer will choose.

Court rules mode (Ontario courts): Enable Ontario court rules and the calculator adds December 28 as "Ontario courts closed (Boxing Day observed)." Ontario courts follow their own closure schedule.

For federal employees: The Canada Labour Code has its own substitution rule: when Boxing Day falls on a non-working Saturday or Sunday, the employee receives a holiday with pay on the scheduled work day immediately before or after.

For other provinces: Boxing Day is not a statutory holiday in BC, Alberta, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, or other provinces. December 26 is just a Saturday.

Calculate Ontario working days →

Related reading

• Canadian Statutory Holidays 2026: The Mid-Week Traps and Provincial Chaos
• Provincial Holiday Differences: The Three Traps That Catch Employers
• Family Day Chaos: One Monday, Five Names, Six Provinces That Skip It

Sources

• Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000: https://www.ontario.ca/document/your-guide-employment-standards-act-0/public-holidays
• Ontario public holiday pay calculation: https://www.ontario.ca/document/your-guide-employment-standards-act-0/public-holiday-pay
• Retail Business Holidays Act: https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90r30
• Federal statutory holidays (Canada Labour Code): https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/services/labour-standards/reports/holidays.html