Language of the Day: Stat Holidays
Find out what the next holiday is after the Family Day holiday we just had, and learn about the official holidays that are observed in British Columbia!
Stat holidays or Statutory holidays are public holidays that are recognized by the government. Some holidays are federal which means that they are observed throughout Canada and other holidays are provincial and vary by province.
Most of us become familiar with holidays when we are students because schools as well as offices and businesses are closed on stat holidays, but a lot of businesses such as restaurants and shopping centres remain open. Staff members who work on stat holidays are generally entitled to get “pay and a half” which means that they can earn an additional 50% of their wage.
Let’s take a look at the stat holidays that we have in British Columbia in 2025:
New Year’s Day - Wednesday, January 1st. New Year’s Day is one of the few holidays when shopping centres are closed along with Christmas Day. Although the new year is observed on different days according to different cultures, most of us get a day of on January 1st!
Family Day - Monday, February 17th. This is a new holiday for BC and just started in 2013! Family Day is observed on the third Monday of February. After new year’s, the next stat holiday used to be Easter so we had to wait 3 or 4 months for a holiday before Family Day was established.
Good Friday - Friday, April 18th. The Easter long weekend usually means that we get four days off in a row including the weekend, but some businesses and organizations, including MOSAIC Engage will be open on Easter Monday which is on Monday, April 21st this year.
Canada Day - Tuesday, July 1st. Canada Day marks the unofficial start of the summer! This holiday is known as “Canada’s birthday” and has been observed since 1867.
B.C. Day - Monday, August 4th. B.C. Day is a provincial holiday that celebrates the history, heritage, and culture of British Columbia. It is always held on the first Monday of August and most other Canadian provinces also have a civic holiday on the same day.
Labour Day - Monday, September 1st. Labour Day is a federal holiday that marks the unofficial end of the summer. Most schools including elementary schools, high schools, colleges and universities re-open the day after Labour Day.
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation - Tuesday, September 30th. This is a day of memorial to recognize the atrocities and multi-generational effects faced by First Nations people in the Canadian Residential school system. People also call it “orange shirt day” and wear an orange shirt out of support. This day was elevated to a statutory holiday in 2021.
Remembrance Day - Tuesday, November 11th. Remembrance Day is a yearly memorial day to remember those who died in military service and to honour those who served in wartime.
Christmas Day - Tuesday, December 25th. Christmas Day is a statutory holiday, and some work places also close early the day before on Christmas Eve. While Boxing Day (which is on December 26th) is not technically a statutory holiday, many work places treat is as a stat holiday.