Probably - but people too lazy to cook their own christmas dinner are spoiling mine

I wouldn't pay it but surely it's helping the industry which is desperately needed thanks to Convid and Labour, no?

This.

700 covers!!! 😮

I used to work Christmas day when I was his age to avoid my mad mother.

I think your wording calling people too lazy has got this crazy response, but I do agree that it's unfair, I understand how there are only so many jobs for kids at that age and I do think it's a shame to have people working so much that they miss Christmas in a job that isn't essential. I hope you got to have some time with all of your family together.

Genuinely struggling to see the issue here. It’s a hospitality job. It literally exists if people use it. Clearly people are using it and the restaurant is having a successful day. Are you saying people should boycott Christmas hospitality options and put the place out of business?

I worked plenty of holidays when I was working in hospitality, it’s just part of what you do. I was glad to be earning 🤷🏻‍♀️

My ex-husband used to work in hospitality management so we’d barely see him in December and definitely never on Christmas Eve/ Day/ Boxing Day, even with very young children. That’s the deal if you work in those industries.

How is it “ruining your Christmas”? 🙄 If you’re that bothered why don’t you give him the money he would earn over this period so he could quit and find a different job in the NY? Either because: a) you’re not THAT bothered that you’d cough up the money for him to be with you instead; or because b) he wouldn’t want to quit and actually sees this as a good opportunity, given many teens struggle to find work, and you are projecting your views onto him (did he say it has “ruined his Christmas”, or is this all about you?; or c) he is deliberately taking a job where he’ll work Christmas to escape such a drama llama mother!

I am a lone parent. I love cooking. However, I’ve just got back from a very nice Christmas lunch out with my children and we do this every year because - unfathomable as it may be to you - I don’t want to spend half of my Christmas Day in my kitchen to cook and then clear up a meal for me and my two children when I could instead relax with them, watch them open presents, play games with them, cuddle up with them by the fire. Sorry that you find that so objectionable and “lazy”. 🙄🙄 I have a full time job and two children and do everything on my own, why shouldn’t I be lazy on Christmas Day?

I tip our taxi drivers and restaurant staff generously every Christmas because I’m grateful they are prepared to give up their time on a bank holiday to facilitate our plans. However, it’s entirely their choice to do so and if they all refused to work at Christmas then there would be no taxis or restaurants open, so clearly many people are willing to do so (for vastly increased pay!) and that’s up to them, not you.

It’s very childish of you to try to project your disappointment onto others. Do you always only use a service if it is “essential”? What if it is your train driver’s birthday on the day you choose to get the train? What if it’s the doctor’s wedding anniversary on the day you have an operation? How would you know? Let alone know whether their mother was having a meltdown about it. How would anybody even know if someone’s mother is alive or lives in the same country as them or has any contact with them at all?

It’s a reasonable presumption that whomever is working Christmas is doing so out of choice - perhaps they don’t like Christmas, or they belong to a religion that doesn’t celebrate it, or money is just more important to them, or for them the career they chose to pursue means more than this inconvenience being a requirement of that career; whatever the reason. It’s none of our business as strangers using the service why someone has made that personal choice (or how their mother feels about it!) because they have made that choice for whatever personal reason otherwise by definition they would not be there working today, would they?

To then have a tantrum at those using a service because one is annoyed about one’s child’s choice of work industry is ridiculous when it’s blatantly obvious that a flexible hours hospitality job would mean a lot of long hours at Christmas and you even state this was made clear to him at the outset and he chose to accept the job anyway. Maybe have a bit less bucks fizz at breakfast time next year? 🤣

We're having an Indian takeaway tonight, opens at 5....

My parent is late 80's and in poor health, my DB and SIL are also disabled/ in poor health. They have booked Christmas dinner out. Not too lazy, unable to manage .
Im a nurse and was working earlier today, just found out Im needed later too.
Its ONE DAY @SheinIsShite .
Give your head a wobble.

You can’t think of anyone that may benefit from a catered pub lunch? People disabled and unable to cook, a small family where it’s more cost effective to eat out va buy it all in, women who maybe for once want to be at the meal and gift opening and not slaving in a kitchen missing the fun parts. Literally if you don’t care about other people OP why should anyone give a shit your son is working his job on Christmas? I will be enjoying my pub tomorrow 🤣

Thanks for the laugh, OP! 🤣

They chose to work in hospitality, welcome to the real world.
You sound like a bundle of laughs, if you carry on they’ll always chose to work long hours on a bad day to be out of your way.

Don’t feel sad @MimosasInFrance , even those going out because they do just want a lazy lunch and no dishes can do so without any guilt.

I accept my ds chooses to work in hospitality, it serves him well all year round. Local hospitality needs the money that comes in due Christmas peak season. I am not going to sit a at home and stew because he’s not here. We’ll be flexible and have a great Christmas, just not at the usual times.

Hope you and your mum enjoyed your meal!

Complaining about something entirely within your son's hands is daft. If people didn't eat out in such numbers (and at least one pp has pointed out that the Xmas period is what keeps a lot of hospitality businesses alive), your son wouldn't have this job at all.

My parents only allowed me to have a Saturday job because my mother absolutely refused to let anything get in the way of my school work. And no, they weren't rich - my dad was a miner and we lived in rented accommodation.

(1) Cook - eat - plate up for when he comes home.

(2) wait for him to come home and then eat

It’s really not rocket science.

we have medical staff, police and hospitality staff in our family who all work at Christmas.

it’s just how it is - we make the best of it - work around it and still have a great time.

No one presumably has a gun to his head forcing him to work in hospitality?

But if he choses to do so - that is how Christmas / new year / Mother’s Day / Valentine’s Day etc is.

total 1st world problem.

This. Exactly this

Thing is though, as a customer are you willing to pay more, or accept a lower standard so that breaks and finish times can be observed - or is that not your problem as a customer?
Because the customers are the ones who pay for the service, and ensuring staff are treated fairly comes at a financial cost.
If all hospitality staff tomorrow worked to 'rule' you'd be seeing prices increasing or standards dropping because it costs money. But if people can't or won't pay more for the service then it runs on the staff working through their breaks and past their finish times.
Would you be happy as a customer in a restaurant at any time of year to be kicked out or to be refused a dessert, or be told you needed to be out by X time because the staff are going home, or wait an extra half an hour for your meal because chef is on his break? Likely not, and you'd be expecting that break or finish time to be covered with no drop in service- but of course that means another member of staff who needs paying - which ultimately comes from the customer.

His working conditions are shit if he was supposed to finish at half 6 and is still there at 11pm. Particularly if he's getting no breaks - there's working time directives for a reason. People are entitled to breaks by law

When I work all over the Christmas period and am not allowed to book leave, yes, I will go and have my Christmas dinner in a restaurant or pub. I will also tip generously and be pleasant and polite to the staff.
if he doesn’t want to work Christmas, he needs to not work in hospitality!?

YABU. I used to do this when I was his age and through uni too. My mother worked on Christmas Day too. You just have to work round it.

Is it not more reasonable to feel annoyed that the place your son works seems to be treating their young, zero hours staff very poorly?
Hopefully he will find a better job soon, or quit if it just doesn't work for him.
Otherwise, it's down to your son to choose whether to work in jobs that might require holiday work, and how to advocate for himself for time off at Christmas if that's important to him.
It has nothing to do with the customers of the pub! Blooming hell.

ETA, I have been to work today! As I have for maybe half of my adult Christmases.

I'm amazed at the number of people who suggest that the son should just leave when he shift it meant to end! All those others working hard looking at him and saying "please stay, just another hour!!"

And maybe he gets overtime for today but he wouldn't have for yesterday or the other extra hours he's worked if he's on a zero hour contract! So he's just staying because he wants to help and/or there's too much peer pressure to allow him to leave.

Thank you for your feedback. 😁

that's great, why don't you do christmas lunch tomorrow instead

This has made me feel really sad.

I just got in from our Christmas lunch in a local pub. My poor mum has motor neurone disease and I have a 2 year old. She can't go to other people's houses now, because they don't have accessible facilities and she can no longer walk. She doesn't have the right set up at her house for me to cook there, and even if she did the mess and chaos would upset her. Also we want to make nice memories together in these last few years we have, not be overwhelmed and stressed. This meant she could go out for a few hours, have a lovely meal and pull some crackers, and is now back in her own surroundings.

The staff were so lovely and kind - I'm so grateful and of course left them a generous top.

Please remember everyone's circumstances are different before you judge.