A new statutory holiday in February will be an added expense for many employers, according to Fasken Martineau.
“For others, however, the new holiday may replace an existing floater holiday,” says an email from the law firm. “Human resource professionals in Ontario would be wise to check their employment policies and collective agreements sooner rather than later on this issue. Employees will begin scheduling their 2008 floaters soon.”
If an employer intends to eliminate or reduce floaters as a result of the new statutory holiday, it will want to alert employees before the scheduling process begins, if possible, Fasken Martineau recommends.
The firm suggests that federally regulated employers may also wish to give early consideration to the dilemmas the new provincial holiday may create because there is no equivalent federal statutory holiday and federal employees are not entitled to the day off.
Customers and suppliers may, however, have the day off and employees’ children will not have to go to school. “Federal employers may be flooded with leave requests and they may have a decreased need for staff,” says the email. “Proactive planning may assist in avoiding disputes and inconsistencies within a federal workplace.”
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