To think that Good Friday and a few other days in the uk are bank holidays?

[NeedsAsockamnesty]

Just had the weirdest conversation about bank holidays.

The other person insisted that Good Friday Easter Monday and Christmas days are not 'proper official bank holidays' in the uk and these days it's ok to just decide they are not.

So is this correct or am I being reasonable thinking that they are bank holidays?

You are right, they are bonkers

if the banks are shut,it's a bank holiday isn't it?

Apparently it was her boss that told her this not exactly sure in what context but something to do with paid holiday

I'm not so secretly hoping someone who knows shit loads about bank holidays will come along so I can print out the response and give it to her because I think she's being taken advantage of

Or if I'm wrong explain why to me so my head can stop being confused

Christmas Day is not a bank holiday. However Boxing Day is.
Good Friday is as is Easter Monday.
Easter Sunday is the only day in the UK where is is against the law for shops to open.

I remember this from when I worked in retail and Christmas Day fell on a Saturday. Because Sunday cannot be a bank holiday, boxing day was shifted to the following Monday. We were trying to claim that the Bank Holiday for christmas day should be carried over too. After long conversations with unions I learned that Christmas day is not a bank holiday and you have no right to have that day off.

That's quite interesting.

That said, I just looked up and found out that Christmas day is a bank holiday!
www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/entitlement

www.gov.uk/bank-holidays

Good Friday is a public holiday rather than a bank holiday. There is a difference especially regarding pay and days off in lieu.

Pipbin, where do you get that it is illegal for a shop to open on Easter Sunday?

The Shop I work in only closes on Christmas Day and New Year's Day, the rest of the year it is open full hours every single day.

Statutory bank holidays in England and Wales. 8 I believe?
NYD
Good Friday
Easter Monday
May Day
Whitsun Monday / late spring BH
August BH
Christmas Day
Boxing Day.

The shops are open this Sunday in Scotland.

According to the link to the government website I just posted, Good Friday is a bank holiday.

Up here in Scotland, the shops are open on Sunday, I was at work yesterday, although have Monday off as it is a local holiday. But the schools start back on Monday and DH has work - he had yesterday off. So possibly England rather than the UK?

In Scotland, Good Friday isn't a public holiday (I think we have public, rather than bank, holidays) and the shops are open as normal all weekend and in Monday, so it may be an English law about the shops not opening.

I thought shops were closed on Easter Sunday.

I have just googled my local shopping centre and it says all stores are closed tomorrow.

Runner Back when the law was changed to allow large shops to open on Sundays the trade off was that they would not be allowed to open on Easter Sunday.

Small shops like newsagents can open, big DIY stores, supermarkets etc can't.

Of course Good Friday and Easter Monday are Bank holidays. They were religious holidays so the banks had to close for them, traditionally.

*Rules for large shops in England and Wales
Shops over 280 square metres:

can open on Sundays but only for 6 consecutive hours between 10am and 6pm
must close on Easter Sunday
must close on Christmas Day*

www.gov.uk/trading-hours-for-retailers-the-law

Easter Sunday is the only day in the UK where is is against the law for shops to open.

That's not true-the shop on our road was definitely open lady Easter Sunday as I bought an easter egg there!!

I think Good Friday is "lumped in" with Bank Holidays now, but I think it was a "holy day" before bank holidays came in to being.

NO, look at the link from the government website. It IS AGAINST THE LAW.
If they open then that's their look out, but the law says they MUST close.

There is no statutory right to the day off on bank or public holidays. The only statutory holidays are those laid down by the Working Time Regulations which gives all workers the right to 5.6 weeks holiday, which does not have to be inclusive of bank holidays. There is also no right to be paid extra if you do work on a bank holiday.

Good Friday is definitely an official bank holiday, here is the gov.uk page saying so. Easter Monday too.

Pipbin is right. All our local supermarkets are closed tomorrow. Try googling the shops in your area. For seasonal opening times, every shop I have looked at will be closed.