This article is reprinted with some changes from when it was published last year in the NSAdvocate.org. At this time I want to remember and celebrate its late editor and founder, my friend, Robert Devet.

KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – Here’s a joke:  in an adult English-as-a-second language class, the teacher asks the students to explain what Easter is. 

One student volunteered: “Easter is the time when the jolly fat man goes down the chimney.”  No that’s Christmas, said the teacher.

Another said, “It is the day to be thankful for the harvest and the food.”  No, said the teacher, that’s Thanksgiving.

A third student explained, ”It’s the day when they take Jesus off the cross, and they put him in a cave, and when they roll away the rock, if he sees his shadow, it’s six more weeks of winter.” 

Well, if you have no union, Easter holidays are little more than a joke here in Nova Scotia. Good Friday – April 15 — is a public holiday, and it is also a store closing day. That means everyone should get the day off. But you only get paid for the holiday if you have earned pay for the preceding 15 out of 30 days, and if you work your shift the day before, and the day after the holiday.   

A retail closing day means most retail stores and offices must be closed on Good Friday.  Grocery stores, clothing stores, malls, banks, credit unions, car showrooms, print shops — to name a handful– must close.  Convenience stores, smaller drug stores, gas stations, restaurants, cafes, bars and stores that cater to tourists can remain open. 

If you have to work on Good Friday, and you qualify to be paid for the holiday, you will receive your regular day’s pay plus one and a half times your regular wages for the number of hours you work on that holiday. Let’s say you earn $15 an hour, and you qualify for the paid holiday. But your boss asks you to work.  Let’s say you work a full day, 8 hours which would be 8 x $15 = $120 in pay.  Plus another 1.5 x 8 x $15 = $180.00. Your total pay should be $120+$180 = $300.00. 

What about work on Easter Sunday & Easter Monday?

Easter Sunday is also a retail closing day, but it is not a paid holiday. If you work at a large grocery or drug store it must be closed. You get the day off, but no holiday pay. And anyone who must work, for instance at a cafe or restaurant, receives no extra pay or time off. 

Easter Monday is a negotiated holiday for many unionized employees. For example, schools, universities, public libraries, the post office and some government offices will be closed Monday, and the workers will be given a day off with pay.   

However, if you work in a retail store, or a service your workplace will be open. And it will be a regular day of work for you at the regular rate of pay. No holiday. 

While some people get three days off work, few get paid for more than one day. This is another s one meaning of Easter.

If you are interested in joining a union, please contact me:  jhaiven@gmail.com. Or plan to attend our next equity watch seminar on Apr. 19 at 4.30 pm ADT: register here

Featured Image: A Hare in the Forest, by Hans Hoffman (circa 1585). Credit J. Paul Getty Museum.