Should Easter Monday be a holiday?

By Ashley Clark

BELLEVILLE – For elementary and high school students, Easter Monday is a day off, but for Loyalist College students it’s a normal Monday.

This is because grade schools are run by different provincial ministries than colleges and universities.

Grade schools are under the jurisdiction of the Ontario Ministry of Education, which says that Easter Monday is a holiday for all school boards, while post-secondary institutions are run by the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, which views things differently.

Once upon a time colleges and universities also had the day off, but executive director of Human Resources at Loyalist College Don Sinclair says this changed sometime in the early 80s.

“What we decided was if part of the mission is to give our students the real world experience, most organizations work Easter Monday and they work Remembrance Day,” Sinclair said.

After bargaining with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, colleges and universities were able to trade off Easter Monday and Remembrance Day in order to get the full week off between Christmas and New Year’s.

“When I grew up, you go to church on Good Friday and you go to church on Sunday. There really wasn’t much happening on Easter Monday,” said Sinclair.

Pastor Steve Paterson from New Hope Church in Belleville said not all churches see Easter Monday as a holiday.

“We don’t really look at Easter Monday as being like a religious holiday for a religious celebration by any means. We look at Good Friday, being the crucifixion of Christ, and Sunday as being the resurrection, but we don’t see anywhere in any scripture where it says that we’re to acknowledge or celebrate the Monday.”

However, Paterson said that everyone should still get the day off.

“I don’t think we have enough holidays as far as statutory holidays for family.”

This coming Easter Monday, qnetnews.ca will be holding a live chat to discuss the issue of Easter Monday from 6:30 p.m. until 7 p.m.. QNet reporters, Ashley Clark and Tara Henley, will be hosting the event.