National Day for Truth and Reconciliation |
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The Government of Canada recently passed legislation to make September 30th a federal statutory holiday called the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will be observed to honour First Nations, Inuit and Métis survivors and their families and communities. This holiday is a vital component of the reconciliation process and will ensure the public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools.
It is meant to be a day for Canadians to spread awareness of and reflect on the tragedies experienced by Indigenous people as a result of the country's former residential school system. The holiday is in line with one of the 94 calls to action of The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which states: "We call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process."
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What does this mean?
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation will be observed on September 30 of each year and will operate the same way as other federal statutory holidays in the country: a mandatory paid day off for those who work in federally regulated jobs.
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What is closed that day?
- Federally regulated private sectors
- air transportation, including airlines, airports, aerodromes and aircraft operations
- banks, including authorized foreign banks
- grain elevators, feed and seed mills, feed warehouses and grain-seed cleaning plants
- first Nations band councils (including certain community services on reserve)
- most federal Crown corporations, for example, Canada Post Corporation
- port services, marine shipping, ferries, tunnels, canals, bridges and pipelines (oil and gas) that cross international or provincial borders
- radio and television broadcasting
- railways that cross provincial or international borders and some short-line railways
- road transportation services, including trucks and buses, that cross provincial or international borders
- telecommunications, such as, telephone, Internet, telegraph and cable systems
- uranium mining and processing and atomic energy
- any business that is vital, essential or integral to the operation of one of the above activities
- Federally regulated public sector
- the federal public service
- Parliament (such as, the Senate, the House of Commons and the Library of Parliament)
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What if my organization or business is not federally regulated?
Federally regulated businesses will be closed and will need to pay employees statutory holiday pay for the day off, but provincially regulated employers are not required to treat this as a holiday.
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Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce
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