Ontario ends daylight saving time as provinces split on clock changes

Ontario will turn clocks back one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, ending daylight saving time and returning to standard time until March. Most of the province, including Toronto and Ottawa, will make the change, while parts of northwestern Ontario will remain on permanent daylight time.

British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories have announced plans to stop seasonal clock changes and stay on year-round daylight time. Saskatchewan has not changed its clocks since the 1960s, and Yukon ended the switch in 2020.

“For most small businesses, the impact is pretty manageable.”

Quebec is considering ending seasonal time changes next year, which could make this November its last clock change. Atlantic Canada will continue the usual time change, while Nunavut is weighing what to do as neighbouring regions drop the practice.

Business groups warn that adjusting to permanent daylight time will require effort to keep meetings, deliveries and flights on schedule. A salesperson in Calgary may forget that a customer in Toronto is now one hour ahead instead of two.

Keyli Loeppky, director of Alberta and interprovincial affairs at the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said the impact is manageable for most small businesses. She added that the biggest challenge is maintaining alignment with customers, suppliers and employees across provincial borders.

Manufacturing and wholesale trade logistics firms are paying close attention because small differences can affect communication, shipping schedules and overall operations. The Manitoba Chambers of Commerce found that 54 percent of members supported the move to permanent daylight time.

In Toronto on Thursday, sunrise was around 7:49 a.m. and sunset was expected around 6:12 p.m. On Nov. 1, sunrise is forecast at around 6:53 a.m. and sunset at 5:08 p.m.