Montreal strike: libraries and culture outings affected

What's happening. Canada Post is gradually converting about four million addresses that still get door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes, over roughly five years. According to its September 16 news release, about 686,000 addresses in 55 communities will be converted in late 2026 or in 2027. The first ones in Canada, this October, are in Sept-Îles and Winnipeg.

The schedule in Quebec. The schedule published by Canada Post is organized by the first three characters of the postal code. These dates are anticipated and may change:

• Sept-Îles (G4R, G4S): October 2026
• La Prairie and Candiac (J5R): April 2027
• Trois-Rivières (G8T, G8V, G8W, G8Y, G8Z, G9A, G9B, G9C): September 2027
• L'Ancienne-Lorette (G2E, G2G), Longueuil (J3Y, J3Z, J4G, J4H, J4J, J4K, J4L, J4M, J4N, J4T), Quebec City (G1X, G2A, G2B, G2E, G2G) and Saint-Hubert (J3Y, J3Z, J4T): October 2027
• Laval (H7P, H7R, H7W, H7X, H7Y): November 2027

Not every address in these codes is affected. The conversion only targets addresses that still get door-to-door delivery. Nearly three quarters of Canadian addresses already get their mail through centralized delivery: a community mailbox, apartment-building mailboxes or a post office box. If that's you, nothing changes.

How it works. Canada Post picks mailbox locations with the municipality. Residents in affected areas are notified of the change and kept informed throughout the process. According to the company, most parcels fit in the mailbox's individual compartment or in a locked parcel compartment.

If getting around is hard for you. Canada Post's Delivery Accommodation Program is free for people with functional limitations. It offers, for example, a sliding tray, Braille features or a more accessible compartment; in some cases, weekly home delivery on a seasonal, temporary or permanent basis.

Good to know for newcomers. Check the first three characters of your postal code against the list above. If you're moving into one of these areas, ask the landlord or seller how mail is delivered there. To forward your mail or update your address with agencies, see our guide to changing your address in Quebec.

Not a holiday in Quebec. Remembrance Day, November 11, is a day to remember those who served Canada and sacrificed. In 2026, it falls on a Wednesday. But the CNESST lists it among the days that are not statutory holidays in Quebec, along with the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30. For most people working in Quebec, it's an ordinary workday, with no statutory holiday indemnity.

The exceptions: the federal sector. November 11 is a statutory holiday for people covered by the Canada Labour Code rather than by Quebec's labour standards. The CNESST gives as examples federal public service employees, employees of Crown corporations such as Canada Post, and workers at federally regulated companies, such as banks, telecommunications companies and interprovincial transport. So some federal services and some banks may operate differently that day: check before you go.

Your employer can go further. Nothing stops them from giving the day off. As Éducaloi points out, an employer that isn't federally regulated can provide this holiday through an internal policy or a collective agreement. If you're unionized, your collective agreement is the place to check.

The red poppy. According to the Royal Canadian Legion, the poppy is worn from October 24 until November 11, on the left side, over the heart. Poppies are distributed free of charge, and donations collected during the campaign support Veterans and their families. On November 11, the Legion also invites people to observe two minutes of silence.

Good to know for newcomers. If you come from another province, don't go by habit: what's a holiday elsewhere isn't necessarily one here. To find out whether you fall under federal rules, look at who your employer is and what sector it works in. Our guide to public holidays in Quebec gives the full list for the year.

The date. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the second Monday of October, not in November as in the United States. This year, it's Monday, October 12, 2026. It's one of the eight paid statutory holidays under Quebec's labour standards.

Who gets the paid day off. Anyone who works, full time or part time, is entitled to it, whatever their status: temporary, casual or on call, and even if they've only worked a few days since being hired. One condition: you must not be absent without a valid reason or permission on the working day before or after the holiday.

If you work that day. Your employer must pay you for the day worked and, on top of that, choose one of two options: pay you a statutory holiday indemnity, or give you a paid day off on another date, within three weeks before or after. According to the CNESST, the indemnity equals 1/20 of the wages earned during the four complete pay weeks before the week of the holiday.

Stores. Under the rules for store opening hours on statutory holidays (in French), stores, grocery stores and SAQ outlets may open at their normal hours on Thanksgiving Monday. Pharmacies may open all day. It's a permission, not an obligation: check the store's hours before you go.

Mail. Canada Post offices are closed on statutory holidays, with no mail pickup or delivery. Postal counters inside a store follow that store's hours.

On the road in Montreal. Mobilité Montréal is announcing major closures (in French) over the long weekend. The biggest: Highway 25 southbound is completely closed, including the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine bridge-tunnel, from Friday 11 p.m. to Sunday 11 p.m., in connection with the Beneva Montreal Marathon. More tunnel closures follow until Tuesday morning, in both directions. Check Québec 511 before you leave.

Good to know for newcomers. If your employer asks you to work on Monday, that's not illegal, but you're entitled to compensation on top of your pay. Our guide to public holidays in Quebec gives the full list for the year.