Easter Monday in Canada

Easter Monday is the day after Easter Sunday, which commemorates Jesus Christ's resurrection, according to the Christian Bible. Easter Monday is also a holiday for many Canadians.

Easter Monday in Canada is a time for Christians to reflect on Jesus Christ's crucifixion, death and resurrection.

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What do people do?

A proportion of Canadians have a day off work on Easter Monday and for some it is the end of a four-day weekend. People who have been on a short vacation or who have visited family or friends often travel home on Easter Monday. For others, it is a chance to eat their easter eggs, relax and, depending on the weather and when Easter falls, enjoy some time outdoors.

Public life

Easter Monday or Good Friday are statutory holidays at the employer's option in Quebec. Easter Monday is a paid holiday for employees in the Northwest Territories, except those in the The Northwest Territories Teachers’ Association (NWTTA). However, these days are not scheduled as part of the school year for employees in the NWTTA. It is a statutory holiday in Yukon and Nunavut. Many schools, businesses and organizations are closed in places where Easter Monday is a day off. Public transport services may run to reduced timetables. In rural areas, there may be no public transport services.

Easter Monday is not a statutory holiday in other Canadian provinces and territories. For example, while some employers in Ontario give their employees a holiday on Easter Monday, the employer is not required to do so under Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA). It is a non-statutory holiday in Nova Scotia, in which employers can agree to provide their staff with an additional paid holiday and the Labour Standards Division could enforce such an agreement. Public transport services may run to their normal or reduced timetables.

Background

Easter Monday is a holiday in many English speaking countries, including England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Australia, and European counties. The tradition of having a holiday on the day after Easter Sunday was brought to Canada by European immigrants. The Easter date depends on the ecclesiastical approximation of the March equinox.

Symbols

Eggs of all types are an important symbol of Easter. They represent the rebirth of nature in the spring and the promise of new life in the spring and summer months to come and are seen as a reflection of the resurrection of Christ after his crucifixion. Easter eggs, whether they are made of chocolate or candy or are decorated hens eggs, are common gifts all over the world during Easter. However, the biggest Easter egg in the world is a representation of a Ukranian Easter egg, known as a Pysanka, located in Vegreville, Alberta.

The Pysanka in Vegreville was constructed in 1974 to mark the centenary of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and to celebrate Vegreville's strong links with the Ukraine. It is made of more than 2000 aluminium triangles fixed together with nearly 7000 bolts and 177 internal struts. The egg is more than 25 feet (nearly eight meters) in diameter and is decorated with a gold, silver and bronze design. Its construction represented significant advances in computer modeling, mathematical theory, architectural design and engineering construction.

About Easter Monday in other countries

Easter Monday Observances

Related holidays

• Palm Sunday ―Sunday, March 24, 2013
• Maundy Thursday ―Thursday, March 28, 2013
• Holy Saturday ―Saturday, March 30, 2013
• Good Friday ―Friday, March 29, 2013
• Easter Sunday ―Sunday, March 31, 2013
• Epiphany ―Sunday, January 6, 2013

Other holidays in April 2013 in Canada

• Last day of Passover ―Tuesday, April 2, 2013
• National Tartan Day ―Saturday, April 6, 2013
• Yom HaShoah ―Monday, April 8, 2013
• Vimy Ridge Day ―Tuesday, April 9, 2013
• Yom HaAtzmaut ―Tuesday, April 16, 2013
• St. George's Day ―Monday, April 22, 2013
• Lag B'Omer ―Sunday, April 28, 2013