Christmas and New Year's Day: who gets paid for statutory holidays, and how much?

By Mathieu Ouellet · Published November 14, 2026 · 7 min read

Service worker leaving a building on a snowy Christmas Eve evening under festive street lights

Is a part-time employee who never works Fridays entitled to pay for Christmas, which falls on a Friday this year? Yes, and the amount follows a precise formula that few people know. Here is who gets paid for December 25, 2026, and January 1, 2027, how statutory holiday pay is calculated, what changes if you work that day, and three worked examples.

Christmas 2026 and New Year's Day 2027: two Friday holidays

Quebec's Act respecting labour standards lists seven statutory general holidays, including January 1 and December 25. Add the Fête nationale on June 24, which is governed by a separate act, and the CNESST counts 8 paid statutory holidays in Quebec. This year the calendar is simple: Christmas falls on Friday, December 25, 2026, and New Year's Day on Friday, January 1, 2027. For most Monday-to-Friday schedules, that means two regular workdays become paid days off.

One more detail that prevents a lot of confusion: December 24, December 26, December 31 and January 2 are not statutory holidays under the Act. An employer can close on those days or give them off, but that is a business decision or a clause in your contract, not a minimum standard.

Date	Day of the week	Status under the Act
December 24, 2026	Thursday	Regular day
December 25, 2026	Friday	Statutory holiday, paid
December 31, 2026	Thursday	Regular day
January 1, 2027	Friday	Statutory holiday, paid

Who is entitled: employees, not self-employed workers

Statutory holiday pay is a labour standard, so it protects employees. A self-employed worker who invoices clients, for example a landscaper who plows driveways on their own account in winter, gets no holiday pay; if they don't work on December 25, they simply don't bill anything that day. Your status depends on how the work is actually organized, not on the title of the contract; the criteria are explained in Employee or self-employed? The criteria that matter in Quebec.

For employees, the Act sets no minimum length of service: someone hired two weeks before Christmas is entitled, just like someone who has been there for ten years. There is one condition, though. To benefit from the holiday, you must not have been absent from work on the working day before or after the holiday without the employer's authorization or a valid reason. On a Monday-to-Friday schedule, that means Thursday, December 24, and Monday, December 28, for Christmas, then Thursday, December 31, and Monday, January 4, for New Year's Day.

One major exception: in the construction industry, holidays are set by the collective agreements. The Commission de la construction du Québec (CCQ) lists the mandatory winter vacation from December 20, 2026, to January 2, 2027. An electrician or roofer on a site covered by construction law must therefore look at their collective agreement, not at the calculation below.

The calculation: 1/20 of the last four weeks of wages

Why 1/20? Because four weeks of five days make twenty workdays. By dividing by 20 the wages earned during the four complete pay weeks before the week of the holiday, the Act pays the equivalent of an average day, whether your schedule is steady or not. That is also what makes it fair for variable schedules: someone who worked little that month receives less, someone who worked a lot receives more.

Item	Included in the calculation?
Wages for regular hours	Yes
Overtime	No, the CNESST specifies that holiday pay excludes it
Declared or allocated tips	Yes, for employees who receive them
A week not worked among the four	Counts as zero

An employee paid entirely or partly on commission follows a different rule: their holiday pay equals 1/60 of the wages earned during the 12 complete pay weeks before the week of the holiday. The longer period smooths out sales that vary from month to month.

A practical point: each holiday has its own reference period. Christmas pay is calculated on the four weeks before the week of December 25; New Year's pay, on the four weeks before the week of January 1. The two amounts can therefore differ.

If you work on December 25 or January 1

Not every service stops at Christmas: a storm on the morning of December 25, and snow removal crews head out. In that case, the Act is clear. Your employer must pay you the wages for the work performed that day and, on top of that, either pay you the holiday indemnity or give you a compensatory day off.

That compensatory day has a deadline: it must be taken within the three weeks before or after the holiday, unless a collective agreement or decree provides for a longer period. For Friday, December 25, 2026, the window therefore runs from Friday, December 4, 2026, to Friday, January 15, 2027. For Friday, January 1, 2027, it runs from Friday, December 11, 2026, to Friday, January 22, 2027.

The Act does not require "double time" for a holiday worked. The hours are paid at your regular rate, and they only become overtime if your week goes past the threshold; the rules are covered in Overtime: when is it paid at time and a half?. Your contract can, of course, be more generous.

Part-time, seasonal, on vacation: the special cases

Part-time, or a schedule that doesn't include Friday. If the holiday doesn't fall on your usual schedule, for example if you clean homes Monday to Wednesday, your employer must still pay you the indemnity or give you a compensatory day off on a date agreed with you. The amount follows the 1/20 formula: it reflects what you actually earn, so it is lower than for full-time staff.

On vacation on the holiday. The same rule applies if you are on annual leave on December 25 or January 1: holiday pay or a compensatory day on an agreed date. The holiday does not "eat" a vacation day. That matters for businesses that close over the holidays.

Seasonal and new employees. Weeks you didn't work count as zero in the average. The CNESST gives the example of someone who has been on the job for two weeks: only two weeks of wages go into the calculation, but the total is still divided by 20. A snow removal worker hired at the end of November therefore gets reduced holiday pay for Christmas, and fuller pay for New Year's Day, since the reference period will have moved forward one week.

If you are looking for a job for the season, Holiday temp jobs: where to look and what to check before saying yes explains what to check before you accept.

Three worked examples for Christmas 2026

In these examples, the pay week runs Sunday to Saturday. Christmas week is therefore December 20 to 26, and the four reference weeks run from November 22 to December 19, 2026.

1. Full-time cleaner who works on the 25th

40 hours a week at $20 an hour, or $800 a week. Holiday pay: 4 × $800 = $3,200, divided by 20 = $160. If the employer asks them to work 8 hours on December 25, they earn $160 for those hours plus the $160 indemnity, for a total of $320. The other legal option: $160 for the work performed and a compensatory day off taken between December 4 and January 15.

2. Part-time, Monday to Wednesday

Three 7-hour days at $18 an hour, or $378 a week. Holiday pay: 4 × $378 = $1,512, divided by 20 = $75.60. Friday, December 25, is not part of their schedule: the employer pays this amount or grants a compensatory day off on an agreed date.

3. Snow removal employee hired on Monday, November 30

Rate of $24 an hour. Week of November 22 to 28: $0 (not yet hired). Week of November 29 to December 5: 32 hours, $768. Week of December 6 to 12: 48 hours, including 8 overtime hours that are excluded, so 40 × $24 = $960. Week of December 13 to 19: 36 hours, $864. Eligible total: $2,592, divided by 20 = $129.60.

To check your own situation, the CNESST offers the monCalcul online calculator. If a gap remains after a written question to your employer, the CNESST is the body to consult: only it can rule on a specific situation.

In short

Christmas falls on Friday, December 25, 2026, and New Year's Day on Friday, January 1, 2027; December 24, 26 and 31 are not statutory holidays under the Act.
Holiday pay equals 1/20 of the wages from the four complete pay weeks before the holiday week, excluding overtime (1/60 over 12 weeks for commission pay).
If you work that day: your wages, plus the indemnity or a compensatory day taken within three weeks before or after.
Part-time, a day outside your schedule or on vacation: you still get the indemnity or a compensatory day; weeks not worked count as zero.
Self-employed workers are not covered, and construction follows its collective agreements.

Looking for an employer who spells out conditions clearly? Browse the job offers or create your free profile in about 3 minutes, no résumé needed. Employer? Tips for handling the holiday season are on the employers page.

Frequently asked questions

Is December 24 a statutory holiday in Quebec?

No. Under the Act respecting labour standards, only December 25 and January 1 are statutory holidays during this period. December 24, 26 and 31 are regular days, unless your contract or collective agreement says otherwise.

How is statutory holiday pay calculated in Quebec?

Add up the wages earned during the four complete pay weeks before the week of the holiday, without overtime, then divide by 20. For an employee paid on commission, it is 1/60 of the wages from the previous 12 weeks. The CNESST offers the monCalcul tool to check.

Do I get double pay if I work on Christmas Day?

The Act does not provide for double time. You receive your wages for the hours worked, plus the holiday indemnity, or a compensatory day off taken within three weeks before or after December 25. Your contract may offer more.

Are part-time employees entitled to statutory holiday pay?

Yes. Even if the holiday doesn't fall on their usual schedule, the employer must pay the indemnity or grant a compensatory day off. The amount uses the same 1/20 formula, so it reflects the hours they actually work.

Do I need a minimum length of service to be paid for Christmas?

No, the Act sets no minimum length of service. The only condition is not to have been absent without authorization or a valid reason on the working day before or after the holiday. A new employee will receive a smaller amount, though, since weeks not worked count as zero.