Manitoba General Holiday Pay Calculator

In Manitoba general holiday pay is a regular day’s pay. The widely quoted “5% of the last four weeks” is not the general rule — s. 23(2) applies it only where your hours or wages vary. Manitoba has nine general holidays, including Louis Riel Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, but not Remembrance Day.

How many days did you work before the holiday?

Days you actually worked or earned wages. The window is 30 days in BC, four weeks in most provinces, three in Newfoundland.

Manitoba pays a regular day’s pay by default. The 5% rule applies only if your hours or wages vary.

What were you paid in that period?

Wages earned before the holiday

Base pay earned in the period before the holiday

Anything else in that period

Leave these at zero if they do not apply. Which of them count is exactly where the provinces disagree.

Excluded by every province — shown so you can see it dropped

Counts in BC and Saskatchewan only

Counts everywhere; changes the formula in Quebec

Counted in Quebec only

What you are owed in Manitoba

$220.00

for one statutory holiday, from $4,400.00 of counted wages

9 paid statutory holidays a year in Manitoba
Regular wagescounts
$4,400.00
Overtime paynot counted here
$600.00
Vacation pay for days takennot counted here
$800.00
Commissioncounts
$0.00
Tips and gratuitiesnot counted here
$400.00

How this was calculated

  1. Wages that count toward holiday payRegular wages $4,400.00 = $4,400.00
  2. Wages Manitoba leaves outOvertime pay $600.00, Vacation pay for days taken $800.00, Tips and gratuities $400.00 — excluded by s. 23(2)
  3. A regular day’s pay$4,400.00 ÷ 20 days worked = $220.00 — s. 23(1), the rule most calculators miss
  4. If you work the holiday1.5× your rate for hours worked, plus your holiday pay

Manitoba: $220.00 of statutory holiday pay.

That is $220.00 for a single holiday. If a short cheque has left you waiting on money you have already earned, NotchUp can advance up to $1,500 for a $5 flat fee.

See what you could advance

Manitoba has two rules, and the 5% is the exception

If you work a fixed schedule, your general holiday pay is simply what you would have earned that day. The four-week average never enters into it.

Nine holidays — and Remembrance Day is not one of them

Section 21(1) lists New Year’s Day, Louis Riel Day, Good Friday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.

Manitoba made Truth and Reconciliation a general holiday in December 2023, joining British Columbia and later Prince Edward Island. Most provinces have not.

Terry Fox Day in August is not a general holiday, despite being widely observed.

Eligibility is by exception, not by threshold

There is no minimum service period in Manitoba. Section 22(1) works the other way round: you are entitled unless you were absent without consent on the first scheduled workday before or after the holiday, or you were scheduled to work the holiday and did not show without consent.

Section 22(2) deems consent given where the absence was for an entitled leave or illness. From 1 October 2026 that provision widens to cover injury as well as illness, under an amendment assented to in June 2026.

Working the holiday

Section 25(1) pays the overtime rate — 1.5× — for the hours worked, plus your general holiday pay.

Section 25(2) carves out an exception for continuous operations, climate-controlled agriculture, seasonal industries, amusement, gas stations, hospitals, hotels, restaurants and domestic service: straight time for the hours worked, plus a substitute day off with holiday pay.

Managers are entitled in Manitoba, and so are regulated professionals — s. 2(4) confines the managerial exemption to Divisions 2 and 3. Construction workers are paid 4% of wages other than overtime annually under s. 30 instead. Farm workers, fishers, volunteer camp counsellors and sub-12-hour domestic workers are excluded.

Frequently asked questions

Is Manitoba general holiday pay 5% of wages?

Only if your hours or wages vary. Section 23(1) pays a regular day’s pay and that is the rule; the 5%-of-four-weeks figure in s. 23(2) is a fallback for variable pay. Much published guidance states the 5% as general, which underpays steady-hours employees.

Is Remembrance Day a general holiday in Manitoba?

No. It sits in The Remembrance Day Act, not the Employment Standards Code. An employee required to work it receives the holiday pay that would have been payable plus the overtime rate for hours worked, or half their normal hours, whichever is more. There is no paid day off for people who do not work it.

Is Truth and Reconciliation Day a holiday in Manitoba?

Yes. Manitoba made 30 September a general holiday in December 2023. Only British Columbia and Prince Edward Island have done the same among the provinces.

Do I need minimum service to get holiday pay in Manitoba?

No. There is no service threshold. Section 22(1) works by exception: you are entitled unless you were absent without consent on the scheduled workday before or after the holiday, or failed to show for a holiday shift you were scheduled to work.

What do I get for working a general holiday in Manitoba?

1.5× your rate for the hours worked plus your general holiday pay, under s. 25(1). Continuous operations, seasonal industries, hospitals, hotels, restaurants and several other sectors instead pay straight time plus a substitute day off with holiday pay.

Do managers get general holiday pay in Manitoba?

Yes. Section 2(4) confines the managerial exemption to Divisions 2 and 3 — standard hours and overtime. Regulated professionals are covered too. British Columbia is the outlier here, excluding managers from holiday pay entirely.

Sources

Every rate, threshold and formula on this page was verified against these primary sources. If a figure here disagrees with one of them, the source is right and we want to know.

About this calculator

Written by
NotchUp Editorial Team
Reviewed by
India Varga
Last reviewed

This calculator is an informational tool, not legal or financial advice. Employment standards rules have exceptions, and your contract or collective agreement may give you more than the legal minimum. For a binding answer about your own situation, contact your provincial employment standards branch or an employment lawyer.

NotchUp Financial Inc. is a licensed lender in British Columbia. License Disclosure: British Columbia, January 11, 2024 License #86443.