LEAVE POLICIES IN THE WORKPLACE
On Employment / Labour Law for residents in Canada
Statutory holidays
The statutory holidays in Canada are New Years Day, Good Friday, Canada Day, Labor Day, Remembrance Day and Christmas Day. For an employee to qualify to be paid for a statutory holiday, an employee must be working with the company for 30 calendar days prior to the holiday, earn wages on 15 of the 30 days prior to the holiday and work his/her last scheduled shift before the holiday and first scheduled shift after the holiday. All three criteria must be met in order to qualify.
Leave for personal reasons
Leave for personal reasons can provide employees with periods of time off, with or without pay, to deal with family obligations or other personal commitments. In general, this type of leave does not exist in labor standards legislation. However, labor standards legislation may include a variety of other leaves intended to help employees meet their personal obligations.
Among these other leaves available in some jurisdictions are:
• annual vacation leave,
• bereavement leave (9 jurisdictions),
• leave for family responsibility (3 jurisdictions),
• court/jury leave (at least 10 jurisdictions have legislation
pertaining to court/jury duty leave),
• marriage leave (Quebec).
Maternity leave
The purpose of this type of leave is to allow mothers to take time off work following the birth of a child. An employee who gives birth is, under certain conditions, entitled to 17 weeks' unpaid leave ( 15 weeks in Alberta, 18 weeks in Quebec and Saskatchewan).
Employees must give their employer notice in writing a few weeks prior to the start of such leave. When she comes back to work, the employee usually returns to her former position or be assigned equivalent duties, with the same salary and benefits.
Parental leave
Parental leave is designed to provide either or both parents with time to spend with their newborns. For the mother, parental leave provisions commonly stipulate that the leave be taken immediately after maternity leave, thereby extending the total leave period. For the father, parental leave provisions allow time off to help with the care of the newborn; sometimes collective agreement language that is gender-specific to the father is referred to as paternity leave.
Paternity leave
Paternity leave enables a father to take a few days or weeks off work after a child is born. Paternity leave was replaced by parental leave in the 1990s in many jurisdictions.
Sick leave
Sick leave enables employees to take time off work when ill. It is not really leave for family obligations although it may sometimes be used as such.
Vacation
Vacations are one of the most common labour policies and practices. Companies may help their employees by allowing them sufficient flexibility to break their leave up into shorter periods; take vacation at the same time as their spouse; take annual leave during the summer when children are at home.
Vacation an employee earns
Vacation pay is paid at the rate of 4% of the employees gross earnings. After one year's continuous service with a company, the employee is entitled to two weeks vacation. If an employee leaves a position voluntarily or involuntarily, he/she still receives any vacation pay owing based on 4% of gross earnings.
Notice to leave his/her position
The first six months of employment is considered probationary and the employee may leave at any time without notice. If he/she is employed with a company between six months and five years, one week's notice in writing is required. If he/she is employed with a company more than five years, two week's notice in writing is required.
