This year is a leap year, meaning an extra day will be tacked on to the end of February, so what does this mean for your paycheque?
According to Alan Price, CEO of Toronto-based HR software provider BrightHR, employers must factor in their employees’ pay structure and “whether they are salaried employees or paid by the hour.”
Hourly employees working on February 29 will be paid as per usual, noted Price.
“This implies that they should be compensated for all actual hours worked, including the extra day in February, just like any other day,” he stated.
It pans out differently for salaried employees.
Price said if they’re working on February 29, they are not eligible for any additional pay for the extra day unless it is specifically outlined in their employment contract.
Employers must ensure that the overall pay for salaried employees doesn’t fall below provincial minimum wage requirements.
If employers have staff who are paid minimum wage and are working on February 29, Price warns that “not paying them for the additional hours might bring their earning below the provincial minimum wage, which is a contravention to minimum employment standards legislation.”
Price added that a leap year doesn’t only have a possible impact on employee pay.
“There [are] also a few more considerations to take into account, like what impact this might have on notice periods, deadlines, and even the day that you pay your staff if it’s usually the last day of the month,” he noted.
Leap years occur every four years and add an extra day to the shortest month of the year, which is February.
According to Time and Date, leap days are needed to keep our calendar aligned with the sun.
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