You are here

Timeliness of Vacation Pay Payment

Subscribe to Syndicate

Employees have a choice on how they receive payment for money that would be due during vacation

  1. Paid during the regular payday. This is the default.
  2. Payment of the salary that would be due just prior to beginning of vacation. This option may be used upon employee request.

Vacation Pay Disbursement

  • Vacation pay may be disbursed on the regular payday, during the vacation time period, or immediately following a vacation, but only where it would not be practical to make the payment earlier. In the case of Alberta, employees can instead request to receive their vacation pay at least one day before starting a vacation.
  • If vacation pay has not previously been paid out and the employee requests it, it must be paid in a lump sum at least one day before the employee's vacation. In any event if prior payment is not practical , the vacation pay must be given to the employee no later than the next regular payday after the vacation begins.
  • Where an annual vacation is fragmented, only a portion of vacation pay must be paid before each period of vacation. This also applies if an employee does not take vacation in complete weeks.
  • If the employee chooses to receive their vacation pay payment in a lump sum prior to commencement of their vacation period, the employee must provide the employer (at minimum) 1 months notice before the starting date of the vacation period.
  • Employees who do not request vacation payment prior to commencement of their vacation period or fail to meet the advance notice requirement to this request, vacation pay will be disbursed on the regular payday.