How Many Days Do We Really Spend on the Job?
In these times, it’s extremely important to know how many business days there are in a year, especially if you would like to maximize your vacation days or make plans. Remember that it is always a good idea to work smarter, not harder – a merchant cash advance Canada – could help you do jutst that. It’s a simple question, but the answer can vary depending on where you live, your industry, and even your company’s policies. In most places, a standard workweek consists of five days (Monday through Friday) with weekends off. However, public holidays and personal time off can change the number of actual working days significantly.
For example, in the US, there are 365 days in a year, but once you subtract weekends (usually 104 days) and federal holidays (about 10-12 days), the number of workdays comes down to around 249-251 days. This number might shift further if you account for personal leave, sick days, or specific company policies. Understanding the breakdown of workdays can help you better plan your time or even improve your work-life balance.
So in this blog, we’ll go over the amount of working days in Canada and how you can better plan your upcoming year. Let’s go!
What Defines a Working Day?
In general, a working day refers to any weekday, typically Monday through Friday, when businesses, offices, and industries operate. It excludes weekends and public holidays, though, this can vary depending on your region or profession. Some industries, like healthcare or hospitality, may require weekend shifts, or holiday shifts from time to time.
The Origins of the 40-Hour Work Week
So, who decided that five days a week, eight hours a day was the magic formula for “full-time work”? Spoiler: it wasn’t always that way.
Long before coffee breaks were a thing, laborers toiled away for most of the week—often clocking in ridiculously long hours, sometimes even hitting 80-hour weeks. This grind was a leftover from centuries past, when people worked 10 to 12 hours a day, pretty much every day, whether they liked it or not.
Things began to shift during the Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries, thanks (or no thanks) to the rise of factories and the invention of the steam engine. With more people than ever flocking to city jobs, employers called the shots. Longer hours became the norm for many workers, especially in manufacturing and textiles. Not exactly the golden age of “work-life balance.”
Workers, unsurprisingly, weren’t thrilled with this arrangement. Enter labor unions and organized protests. The pushback prompted some states to consider regulations, but it wasn’t until the 1930s in the United States that serious change took hold. In 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act finally set national standards for maximum hours, minimum wage, and overtime pay, officially capping the average workweek at 44 hours. By 1940, this was further adjusted—conveniently—for our modern lives, giving us the 40-hour, five-day workweek that most people follow today.
What does all this mean for your plans to maximize PTO and long weekends? You can thank a few centuries of hard-fought labor history for the schedule most of us now take for granted.
Calculating the Average Number of Business Days in a Year
So in Canada, it’s actually quite easy to calculate the number of business days in a year. For example, you’ll start with the total number of days in a year (365 or 366 in a leap year). Subtract weekends, which typically account for 104 days in a standard Monday-to-Friday work schedule. This leaves around 261 potential weekdays. From there, factor in public holidays, which vary depending on your location or province. Internationally, some countries have more or less but it depends on how much annual leave they get and how many statutory holidays they have. Some countries or regions with more public holidays might have even fewer workdays in a year. Here’s the data:
International
| Country | Public Holidays | Annual Leave | Working Days (Average) |
| United States | 10 | 10 | 241 |
| Canada | 11 | 15 | 235 |
| UK | 8 | 28 | 225 |
| Germany | 12 | 20 | 229 |
| Australia | 10 | 20 | 231 |
| Spain | 14 | 22 | 225 |
Provincial
| Province | Public Holidays | Annual Leave | Working Days |
| Alberta | 9 | 10 | 242 |
| British Columbia | 10 | 10 | 241 |
| Manitoba | 10 | 10 | 241 |
| Saskatchewan | 10 | 15 | 236 |
| Ontario | 9 | 10 | 242 |
| Quebec | 8 | 10 | 243 |
| New Brunswick | 10 | 10 | 241 |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | 11 | 10 | 240 |
| Nova Scotia | 6 | 10 | 245 |
| PEI | 7 | 10 | 244 |
| Northwest Territories | 11 | 10 | 240 |
| Yukon | 12 | 10 | 239 |
| Nunavut | 11 | 10 | 240 |
Please note that this chart does not reflect personal leave or an exact amount of vacation days. It’s always recommended to clarify with your employer!
Month-by-Month Breakdown: 2025 Working Time Calendar
Let’s get practical—if you’re planning ahead for 2025, you’ll want to know exactly how many business days, total work hours, weekends, and federal holidays show up month by month. Whether you’re booking trips, prepping project timelines, or just daydreaming about long weekends, here’s how the year stacks up for a standard Monday-to-Friday schedule:
January
- Workdays: 21
- Work hours: 168 (assuming an 8-hour workday)
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 2
February
- Workdays: 19
- Work hours: 152
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 1
March
- Workdays: 21
- Work hours: 168
- Weekends: 10 days
- Federal holidays: 0
April
- Workdays: 22
- Work hours: 176
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 0
May
- Workdays: 21
- Work hours: 168
- Weekends: 9 days
- Federal holidays: 1
June
- Workdays: 20
- Work hours: 160
- Weekends: 9 days
- Federal holidays: 1
July
- Workdays: 22
- Work hours: 176
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 1
August
- Workdays: 21
- Work hours: 168
- Weekends: 10 days
- Federal holidays: 0
September
- Workdays: 21
- Work hours: 168
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 1
October
- Workdays: 22
- Work hours: 176
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 1
November
- Workdays: 18
- Work hours: 144
- Weekends: 10 days
- Federal holidays: 2
December
- Workdays: 22
- Work hours: 176
- Weekends: 8 days
- Federal holidays: 1
Totals for 2025:
- Total workdays: 250
- Total work hours: 2,000
- Total weekends: 104 days
- Total federal holidays: 11
This breakdown should help you map out your time—whether you’re budgeting for overtime, thinking about when to take that cross-country road trip, or just keeping tabs on how busy your calendar might get.
How to Convert Your Salary to an Hourly Rate
Ever wondered what your salary breaks down to on an hourly basis? Whether you’re thinking about taking on a freelance gig, comparing job offers, or just getting curious about what you really earn for every hour at your desk, converting your annual salary to an hourly rate can help you see the bigger picture.
Here’s a simple way to do it:
- Start with your annual salary.
- Divide that by the number of workdays in a year. (For most, that’s about 261 days—after you subtract weekends.)
- Then, divide by the typical hours you work each day. Standard full-time jobs often assume 8 hours per day.
For example, if you make $52,000 a year, work 261 days, and average 8 hours per day:
$52,000 ÷ 261 days ≈ $199.24 per day
$199.24 ÷ 8 hours ≈ $24.91 per hour
Doing this math can be a real eye-opener—especially if you find overtime adds more hours than you expected, or if you’re weighing a side project against your main gig. Getting clear on your true hourly rate makes those work-life balance decisions that much easier.
How Many Week Days In A Year?
A standard year has 365 days and there are 104 weekend days in that time. So this means we subtract 104 from 365 to give us 261 week days in a year.
How Many Work Weeks In A Year?
A standard year has 365 days. From those 365 days we you typically work at most 261 days once we exclude the weekends (104 days) – A standard Canadian work week from Monday to Friday is 5 days so you can do the maths to show there are roughly 52 working weeks (261 divided by 5) in a year.
How Holidays and Weekends Impact the Work Calendar
Holidays and weekends without a doubt impact the total number of working days in a year. Weekends typically account for 104 non-working days annually, assuming a standard Monday-to-Friday schedule. When public holidays are added to the mix, the number of available workdays decreases even further. The average amount of holidays per province is about 10 but some provinces also have additional days such as BC Day and Saint Patrick’s Day. Federal holidays in Canada include:
- New Year’s Day – January 1
- Good Friday – Friday before Easter Sunday (date varies)
- Canada Day – July 1 (or July 2 if July 1 falls on a Sunday)
- Labour Day – First Monday in September
- Christmas Day – December 25
- National Day for Truth and Reconciliation – September 30 (federal employees and some provinces)
- Civic Holiday – August 5th
- Victoria Day – May 19th
Province Specific Holidays
- Saint Patrick’s Day (Newfoundland)
- Islander Day (PEI)
- BC Day (BC)
- Saskatchewan Day (Saskatchewan)
- Easter Monday (QC, ON)
- Heritage Day (Nova Scotia)
- Louis Riel Day (Manitoba)
- Saint Georges Day (Newfoundland)
- National Aboriginal Day (NT)
- Discovery Day (Newfoundland)
- St. Jean The Baptist Day (Quebec)
Statutory holidays often come with a little bit of a bonus, especially if you’re stuck working them. Typically, you’ll get either 1.5 or X2 your hourly rate or sometimes more depending on the company’s policy.
Variations in Working Days Across Provinces and Industries
The number of working days in a year can vary significantly depending on where you live and the industry you work in. Your industry also plays a major role in determining your work schedule. While most office-based jobs follow a standard Monday-to-Friday routine, industries like retail, healthcare, or hospitality often require weekend shifts and reduce traditional ‘Days Off.” So you may not get as many days off in a year.
Some professionals, such as freelancers or entrepreneurs, may have highly flexible schedules that blur the lines between working days and personal time, so they may work even more! It may not seem like it but your industry is a huge factor.
How Technology Has Changed the Way We Work
It’s no secret that rapid technological advances have completely transformed what a typical workday looks like. Thanks to laptops, smartphones, high-speed internet, and collaboration tools like Slack and Zoom, working from home (or virtually anywhere) has become the norm for many. You no longer need to be chained to a desk from 9 to 5—today’s workforce often has the power to pick and choose when and where they get things done.
But let’s be honest: this newfound flexibility is a double-edged sword. On one hand, modern tech makes it easier to adapt your working hours around family life, personal projects, or even squeezing in a midday gym session. On the other, the lines between “on” and “off” have never been blurrier. When your office is always just a click away, the temptation to check emails at midnight or squeeze in “one last task” on weekends is very real.
This shift has its perks, but it also comes with challenges. Many people find themselves juggling multiple tasks at once—sometimes leading to longer hours and creeping burnout. It can become tricky to switch off, and without clear boundaries, true downtime often takes a back seat. Even organizations like the World Health Organization have flagged burnout as an occupational concern in the era of 24/7 connectivity.
So, while technology offers incredible freedom, it also puts the onus on each of us to manage our work-life balance carefully. Establishing routines, setting boundaries, and using our tools wisely is more important than ever.
The Challenges of the “Always-On” Work Culture
But, let’s not kid ourselves—flexible schedules and work-from-anywhere perks come with their own set of headaches. When work emails and Slack notifications follow you well past dinner, boundaries between job and home life start to blur in a big way. The end result? Many people end up burning the candle at both ends—multitasking themselves into exhaustion or letting tasks snowball due to constant distractions.
The pressure to be “always available” can seriously undermine your ability to switch off and recharge. Time that should be spent unwinding or enjoying a vacation easily gets swallowed up by last-minute requests or the temptation to just check “one more thing.” This chronic overextension can wreck productivity in the long run and lead to full-blown burnout. In fact, the World Health Organization now recognizes burnout as a genuine workplace issue—a reminder that always being on-call is hardly a recipe for a balanced, healthy career.
Trends and Predictions for Future Work Hours
If you’ve ever wished for a shorter workweek, you’re not alone—and the tides may be turning in your favor. Over the years, the average annual work hours have been steadily dropping in many countries as technology continues to reshape how we get things done. For example, in Germany, workers saw a dramatic reduction of over 400 hours a year between the late 1970s and the 2010s. This isn’t just a statistic—it’s a trend many economists predict will continue as automation, remote work, and efficiency tools become even more widespread.
Here’s what’s driving the change:
- Technological advancements: Automation and smarter software are taking over repetitive tasks, freeing up time for workers.
- Shifting attitudes: Both employers and employees are rethinking what “full-time” means, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic made flexible schedules more mainstream.
- Policy experiments: A handful of progressive countries and companies have begun piloting four-day workweeks, and in some places like Iceland and New Zealand, early results have shown equal or increased productivity with fewer hours worked.
So, while we may not be at that mythical 15-hour week just yet, the general direction is clear—a future with even shorter average annual work hours could be right around the corner, especially as the conversation around work-life balance heats up.
Why Knowing the Number of Working Days Matters
It’s very important to understand the amount of working days in a year, so you can plan effectively for the year ahead and maximize your time off. Knowing the number of working days each week helps you structure your tasks, manage deadlines, and maintain a healthy work-life balance. It will help you make sure you’re not overloading yourself and allow you to plan for downtime.
On a yearly scale, this knowledge becomes even more valuable. It helps with setting realistic goals, planning long-term projects, scheduling vacations, and even budgeting your income and time.
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