Canadian Statutory Holidays 2012

With the new year here, and the holiday spirit still within all of us, this would be the best time to plan your next vacation or trip. If you are entitled to statutory leave, here is a list of Canadian Statutory holidays for 2012, to help you make your future planning a little easier. But before you take these holidays into consideration, it is important to remember that not every employee qualifies for a statutory holiday in Canada. The statutory holidays vary according to the province and jurisdiction. Below is a table that gives you detailed information about the Canadian statutory holidays 2012, that are observed in different provinces of Canada. Take a look and make your plans accordingly, and even keep some days free to relax, with the holidays available in your province or jurisdiction.

Wages on Statutory Holidays
It is important in certain jurisdictions to obtain certain qualifications to be entitled to statutory holidays. In most of the jurisdictions in Canada, it is mandatory to work on a holiday upon the request of the employer. Even if at the request of the employer, the employee does not report to work, the holiday pay is forfeited. On all statutory holidays that an employee is entitled to, the holiday is paid for. If the employee works on these holidays, a premium of a time and a half of the work hours is to be paid to the employee by the employer.

Eligibility for Statutory Holidays
The length of your service plays a crucial role in being eligible for statutory holidays. The length of service can vary from 30 days to 3 months, to avail these holidays. If not, you are expected to report to work on these days. In some provinces, the employee is expected to report to work immediately the day after a statutory holiday, in order to be eligible for the holiday pay, which is otherwise forfeited. In Manitoba and a few other jurisdictions, it is necessary for an employee to work on a normal day off, if he/she hasn't worked on a statutory holiday, to be eligible for the premium wage.

Canadian Statutory Holidays 2012
Holiday	Date	Day	Province
New Year's Day	January 1	Sunday	Holiday in all provinces
Valentine's Day	February 14	Tuesday	Not an official holiday in any province
Islander Day	February 20	Monday	Holiday only in PEI
Family Day	February 20	Monday	Holiday only in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario
St Patrick's Day	March 17	Saturday	Not an official holiday in any province
Good Friday	April 6	Friday	Holiday in all provinces except Quebec
Easter Monday	April 9	Monday	Holiday only in Quebec
Mother's Day	May 13	Sunday	Not an official holiday in any province
Victoria Day	May 21	Monday	Holiday in all provinces except New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland
Father's Day	June 17	Sunday	Not an official holiday in any province
St. Jean's Baptiste Day	June 24	Sunday	Holiday only in Quebec
Canada Day	July 1	Sunday	Holiday in all provinces
Civic Holiday	August 6	Monday	Holiday only in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick and Nunavut
Labor Day	September 3	Monday	Holiday in all provinces
Thanksgiving	October 8	Monday	Holiday in all provinces except New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland
Halloween	October 31	Wednesday	Not an official holiday in any province
Remembrance Day	November 11	Sunday	Holiday in all provinces except Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland
Christmas	December 25	Tuesday	Holiday in all provinces
Boxing Day	December 26	Wednesday	Holiday only in Ontario

This was the list of Canadian statutory holidays 2012. It is important to remember that not all jurisdictions allow employees to refuse work on statutory holidays. Only Newfoundland allows employees to refuse work on a public holiday. Now that you know of all the legalities, you could relax and decide upon how you will be spending these holidays. Here are a few tips on how you could spend the holidays on a few special occasions in 2012.

Statutory Holiday Weekends
Those in PEI can plan something on Islander Day, since it falls on a Monday. For those of you in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario, on Family Day, which falls on a Monday in 2012, you could plan a nice long weekend by renting a cottage and have fun skiing. Victoria Day would be marking the end of winter, and thus you could plan a lot of fun summer activities that open up during this time. Civic Holiday comes on a Monday, so those in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick and Nunavut can plan something substantial that time. Again, Labor Day falls on a Monday, and is a holiday in all the provinces, so that is another longer-than-normal weekend for everyone. Thanksgiving again is coming on a Monday, so an exciting family get-together can be organized on that weekend.

With all the rules and policies involved with these holidays, it may make planning a vacation a little tedious. But with some Canadian statutory holidays 2012 falling on a Monday or Friday, you can plan a nice long weekend with family or friends. You can also keep some of the holidays free for some important work, or to meet up with people you haven't seen in a log time, due to time constraints.