| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ontario Travel to Tourist Destinations on Family Day February 18.
Northof Toronto.....February 2008. Tourist destinations north of Toronto
will be looking forward to the new long weekend resulting from the Family
Day Holiday designation on February 18. Many resorts, hotels, cottages,
inns, north of Toronto have put together getaway
weekend packages or special one night package rates, daily events,
suggested day trips for family fun activities.
The Ontario Government reminds Shoppers and merchants that under the
Retail Business Holidays Act (RBHA), Family Day, February 18, is one of
nine days per year when most stores in Ontario must be closed.
See additional Ontario Holiday Long Weekends.
This year is the first time that Family Day will be celebrated. The holiday
will take place on the third Monday of every February.
The RBHA allows book or magazine stores under 2,400 square feet with
a maximum of three employees, pharmacies under 7,500 square feet, flower
shops and gas stations to remain open on holidays. In some municipalities,
local bylaws allow other stores to remain open in
locations established as tourist areas by specific municipal by-laws.
Any questions about tourism designations or local hours of retail operation
should be directed to the local tourist destination municipal clerk's
office.
The RBHA strikes a balance between allowing certain retail businesses
to remain open and providing employees and consumers with a common day
of pause. To inquire about which types of retail operations are exempt
from the RBHA and
what businesses can remain open on Family Day, please call the ministry
at 416-326-8800 or toll-free at 1-800-889-9768. For more information on
Family Day and the Employment Standards Act,
please see the recent background release from Ontario's Ministry of Labour
at:
http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/news/2008/08-05b.html
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For further information: Ref: Store Openings, Public Inquiries: (416)
326-8800 or 1-800-889-9768; Ciaran Ganley, Ministry of Government and
Consumer
Services, (416) 325-8659; Ref: Rates of pay and other labour-related issues,
Public Inquiries (Employers and Workers): (416) 326-7160 or 1-800-531-5551;
Bruce Skeaff, Ministry of Labour, (416) 326-7405
Publisher's Note:
Ontario residents will look forward to a winter holiday long weekend
starting in 2008.
400ELEVEN has developed a number of Winter
Getaways with more than 150 members north of Toronto providing a variety
of outdoor winter getaway weekends at resorts, inns, hotels and the many
resort destinations north of Toronto. Additional long weekend dates can
be found at 2008 Long Weekends.
Note: Not all employees will receive the Family Day Holiday in February
2008. The holiday will depend on existing agreements or holidays already
assigned. Each individual employer will arrange with employees to determine
the best means of taking the Ontario family holiday. More information
and opinions on Ontario's new Family Day can be found at http://www.nupge.ca/news_2007/n12oc07b.htm |
