All you need to know about employee’s leave, compensation, statutory holidays, vacation and other entitlements under the Québec Labour Standards Act  

Sick Days: 3 days’ unpaid Sick Leave for employees with at least 3 months’ continuous service plus paid sick leave of:  

• 1 day after 12 months of continuous employment 
• 2 days after 24 months of continuous employment 
• 3 days after 36 months of continuous employment 

Leaves of Absence (all leaves are unpaid unless specified otherwise):    

• 10 days’ Parental or Family Obligations Leave to meet family responsibilities for employees with at least 6 months’ continuous service, the first 2 days of which must be paid if the employee has been employed for at least 3 months 
• Long-term Parental or Family Obligations Leaves of: 
• 16 weeks to care for a family member or other person for whom the employee acts as a caregiver who’s had a serious accident or illness 
• 27 weeks if the seriously ill person suffers from a life-threatening illness 
• 36 weeks if an employee’s minor child is seriously ill or involved in a serious accident   
• 18 weeks’ Maternity Leave 
• 5 consecutive weeks’ Paternity Leave 
• 5 days’, the first 2 of which must be paid, for both parents for: 
•  the birth of a child, including one born as a result of a surrogate mother 
•  adopting a child 
• a miscarriage or other termination of pregnancy that occurs from the 20th week of pregnancy or later 
• 65 weeks’ Parental Leave 
• 3 weeks’ Pregnancy Termination Leave if pregnancy terminates before 20th week 
• 20 weeks if pregnancy terminates after 20th week 
• 1 day Wedding or Civil Union Leave 
• 5 days’ Death or Funeral Leave, the first 2 of which must be paid 
• 104 weeks’ Suicide Leave for the suicide of an employee’s spouse or partner, parent or adult child 
• 104 weeks’ Child Disappearance Leave for the disappearance of an employee’s minor child 
• 24 months’ Reservist Leave over 60-month period 
• 26 weeks’ Organ or Tissue Donation leave 
• 104 weeks’ Crime Victim’s Leave if the employee or their spouse or child is the victim of a crime 
• 26 weeks’ Domestic or Sexual Violence Leave, the first 2 days of which must be paid if the employee has at least 3 months’ continuous employment 
• Public Health or Civic Emergency Leave for as long as necessary as employees can’t work due to a declared emergency 

Vacation: Employee must work 1 full year to be entitled to vacation time 

• Entitled to 2 weeks of vacation after each of the first 4 years of employment and must be paid at least 4% of vacationable earnings
• Entitled to 3 weeks of vacation after 5 consecutive years of employment and must be paid at least 6% of vacationable earnings 

Statutory Holidays: New Year’s Day, Good Friday or Easter Monday, National Patriots’ Day, National Holiday, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day 

Stat Holiday Pay Entitlement: To be eligible for stat holiday pay, employee must not be absent from work without a valid reason, or without the employer’s authorization, before or after the holiday  

Stat Holiday Pay Amount: 

(If worked): Paid compensatory leave which must be taken within the 3 weeks before or after the public holiday or 1/20 of the wages earned by the worker during the 4 full pay periods before the week of the holiday 

(If not worked): 1/20 of the wages earned by the worker during the 4 full pay periods before the week of the holiday  

PAY:   Minimum Wage: $16.10 per hour 

Standard Work Hours: 40 hours per week  

WORKERS’ COMPENSATION:  Average Workers’ Comp Assessment Rate 2026: $1.54 per $100 assessable payroll Workers’ Comp Maximum Assessable/Insurable Earnings 2026: TBA ($98,000 in 2025)