Boxing Day: a Stat Holiday?
Boxing Day can be confusing for some organizations. Is Boxing Day a statutory holiday or is it not?
According to the Employment Standards Act of BC, the 26th of December is not considered a required statutory holiday. However, many organizations extend the holiday cheer and consider the 26th as a paid holiday and provide their employees the extra day off. This year Boxing Day falls on Friday and we recommend treating the day as an extra statutory holiday (if you don’t already), by allowing your employees to continue their holiday celebrations and enjoy an extra long weekend.
Wondering what to do with December 24th and 31st?
Christmas Eve (Wednesday, December 24th) and New Year’s Eve (Wednesday, December 31st) create a buzzing atmosphere in the office. Why not free this energy and shorten the work day (organization needs permitting)? Your employees will welcome this holiday gift.
If you are wondering how to provide guidelines around this, here is a suggestion:
Traditionally, our offices close early on December 24th and December 31st. The time of the closure will be dependent on business needs and will be communicated during the day of the closure.
And, if you are asked this half as much as we are, here is an additional guideline to consider:
<emIf you choose to take a vacation day on either of these dates, it will be counted as one full day
What is the reason behind this? Those who work the day may benefit from going home early however it is still dependent on business needs, so for that reason not guaranteed. By addressing these factors, employees can make a decision on whether or not they want to book the day off.
Happy Holidays from all of us at Jouta!
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