Bill 204 2007

An Act respecting the observance of Remembrance Day and to make related amendments and repeals to other Acts

Note: This Act amends or repeals more than one Act.  For the legislative history of these Acts, see Public Statutes – Detailed Legislative History on www.e-Laws.gov.on.ca.

Preamble

Remembrance Day commemorates the armistice signed to end the First World War at 11:00 a.m. on November 11, 1918, being the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of that year.

In Canada, Remembrance Day honours the memory of those soldiers, including more than 116,000 Canadians, who bravely and unselfishly gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars, in the Korean War and in peacekeeping efforts in the struggle for peace and freedom.

The people of Ontario must never forget their extraordinary courage and profound sacrifice. As a gesture of respect for the fallen, it is appropriate to unite in honouring their memories by observing two minutes of silence each Remembrance Day and to make the day a retail business and school holiday.

Therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Two minutes of silence

   1.  (1)  Subject to subsection (2), at 11 a.m. on each Remembrance Day, the people of Ontario shall pause and observe two minutes of silence in honour of those who died serving their country in wars and in peacekeeping efforts.

Voluntary compliance

   (2)  The silence can only be achieved through voluntary observance and through our collective desire to remember.

Suggestions for observing the silence

   (3)  The following are suggestions for ways to promote the observance of the silence:

    1.  We can participate in a traditional Remembrance Day service at a war memorial or cenotaph.

    2.  If driving, we can pull our vehicles to the side of the road and sit quietly.

    3.  We can announce the silence on the public address systems of our places of business and of our institutions, if they are not closed for the day.

    4.  We can gather in common areas of our places of business and of our institutions, if they are not closed for the day.

    5.  We can briefly shut down our assembly lines, if they are not closed for the day.

    6.  We can hold Remembrance Day assemblies in our schools, colleges and universities, if they are not closed for the day.

    7.  We can hold Remembrance Day services in our places of worship.

Amendments to other Acts and Repeal

Education Act

   2.  Section 11 of the Education Act is amended by adding the following subsection:

School holiday

   (7.0.1)  Despite any regulation made under clause (7) (a), Remembrance Day shall be a school holiday.

Employment Standards Act, 2000

   3.  The definition of "public holiday" in subsection 1 (1) of the Employment Standards Act, 2000 is amended by adding the following paragraph:

  6.1  Remembrance Day.

Retail Business Holidays Act

   4.  The definition of "holiday" in subsection 1 (1) of the Retail Business Holidays Act is amended by adding the following clause:

(f.1)  Remembrance Day,

Repeal

   5.  The Remembrance Day Observance Act, 1997 is repealed.

Commencement and Short Title

Commencement

   6.  This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short title

   7.  The short title of this Act is the Remembrance Day Observance Act, 2007.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Bill replaces the Remembrance Day Observance Act, 1997 with a new Act to make Remembrance Day a retail business and school holiday.