If you’re in Nova Scotia, you likely call February 17 Heritage Day. People in Prince Edward Island know it as Islander Day, and in other parts of Canada, the third Monday in February is primarily known as Family Day. Whatever you call it, it’s a nice break in the often cold and sometimes depressing month of February.
Heritage Day is one of six public holidays in Nova Scotia. These include New Year’s Day, Heritage Day, Good Friday, Canada Day, Labour Day, and Christmas Day.
Many NSUPE collective agreements also add Easter Monday, Victoria Day, Natal Day, Thanksgiving Day, Remembrance Day, and Boxing Day to the list. Your collective agreement specifies who qualifies for the holiday, what holiday pay you can expect, and any other employer-specific clauses.
Do you know what your collective agreement says about holidays? Find out now by visiting your Local’s webpage.
This year’s Heritage Day honours the community of Africville, which was a small close-knit African Nova Scotian community located on the shores of the Bedford Basin. Built by the descendants of the Black Loyalist and the Black Refugees who came to Nova Scotia in the late 1700s and early 1800s. For more information on the community Africville and Heritage Day, please visit https://heritageday.novascotia.ca/content/2020-honouree-community-africville.
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