How do I calculate public holiday pay for my employees?

Public holiday pay equals all regular wages earned by the employee in the four work weeks before the holiday plus all vacation pay payable for that period, divided by 20. Ontario’s Employment Standards Act (ESA) specifies this formula in Section 24(1).

The calculation uses only verbatim figures from the ESA: for an employee earning $200 per day for 20 days (eight hours daily, five days weekly) with no vacation pay during those four weeks, the total is $4,000. Dividing $4,000 by 20 equals $200 public holiday pay. This matches Ontario’s public holiday pay example in the ESA Policy Manual, where regular wages ($4,000) plus vacation pay ($0) divided by 20 results in $200.

First, gather all regular wages earned by the employee in the four work weeks before the holiday. Next, add any vacation pay payable for that same four-week period. After that, divide the total by 20 to determine the public holiday pay amount. Keep records showing the exact wages and vacation pay used for this calculation to confirm compliance.