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Original poster

We should all boycott Next shops Boxing Day ( well too late for today as I was fast asleep at 6 am)

198 replies

Mammajay · 26/12/2019 12:47

I just heard a husband on the radio. His wife had to work Christmas eve ( no problem IMO with that) and also had to work today Boxing Day.. She had to be in work for 5.30 a.m. for the 6am Next Boxing Day sale. No public transport and Christmas Day overshadowed with the worry of getting up early enough to get ready and get to work for 5.30am. No choice about whether to work either. Spirit of Ebenezer Scrooge IMO. Very poor Next. 0/10 for caring about your staff!

OP posts:
AlexaShutUp · 26/12/2019 12:49

Personally, I think we should all avoid shopping anywhere on Boxing Day. Give the retail staff a break.

It isn't just about Next.

NeedAnExpert · 26/12/2019 12:53

I think you might be the only person to have to have posted about this. Confused

Thescrewinthetuna · 26/12/2019 12:54

The older I get the more I think the greed, the overspending and overconsumption surrounding Christmas is really gross. Since my early-20s (so last 8/9 years) I’ve purposely avoided shopping on Boxing Day or going to the pub etc because I just dislike the fact some people are forced to work. Next take it to another level with their sales, I worked there as a teenager and it was grim getting up at 4am on Boxing Day and witnessing people queueing up at 5am outside the shop.

NeedAnExpert · 26/12/2019 12:54

Personally, I think we should all avoid shopping anywhere on Boxing Day. Give the retail staff a break.

But not hospitality workers, breakdown services, theatre and stadium staff, taxi drivers.......

LemonSqueezy0 · 26/12/2019 12:54

I agree, it's wholly unnecessary to open at all, or even as early as that. Home bargains closes every Christmas day and boxing day, it's obviously not difficult to think of staff and still turn a profit.

People are voting with their feet though, apparently the Next store near us had queues down the street at an ungodly hour. Crown Hmm

Vicliz24 · 26/12/2019 12:56

Having worked in retail all my life I absolutely believe it should be law the shops stay closed today . All shops . Retail workers work desperately hard in the build up to Christmas and should be allowed their family time . We are not lifesavers or vital to the running of the country . Shop online if you must shop at Christmas.

refraction · 26/12/2019 12:56

They could at the very least open at 11.

tectonicplates · 26/12/2019 12:57

I've never understood the appeal of the Next sale, or why it starts so early in the morning.

sweetkitty · 26/12/2019 13:02

My idea of hell the Next sale at 5am. Much rather be in my bed.

It’s driven by demand though those that want to go go. I do think shops should shut today though

DeeZastris · 26/12/2019 13:04

Yet again no one seems to give a shit about hospitality staff, bus drivers, taxi drivers, cinema staff etc. Just the poor over worked retail staff. It’s most odd.

LemonSqueezy0 · 26/12/2019 13:04

@NeedAnExpert unfortunately that is the way the hospitality, emergency and care services work. People can't help needing an ambulance, or breaking down. The hospitality services rely on a good turnover during the festive season. It's not great that anyone has to work, but I think the point here is that Next, as a prime example, opening at such an early hour is unnecessary. The staff have to prep the store and (so called) bargains before the 6am opening. They dont open at 6am any other day, so why do it boxing day?

bilbodog · 26/12/2019 13:04

Couldnt agree more.

BestIsWest · 26/12/2019 13:05

I as just saying the same thing OP.

DeeZastris · 26/12/2019 13:06

I do agree that next should open (especially so early) but people don’t need to go out for a cheeky pint, a spot if lunch etc in Boxing Day either.

ouch321 · 26/12/2019 13:07

What is the speceif reason for the 5am/6am starts?
Does anyone know?
In fact if it is for marketing if they opened at 9am I'm sure that the queue would be longer...

RufusthebewiIderedreindeer · 26/12/2019 13:08

For all those saying hospitality staff etc

I completely agree

However the OP has started a thread about shops, please do start a thread about hospitality staff etc and I’ll bet you get the same sort of Replies

HoHoHoik · 26/12/2019 13:08

Yet again no one seems to give a shit about hospitality staff, bus drivers, taxi drivers, cinema staff etc. Just the poor over worked retail staff. It’s most odd.

People do give a shit about staff in other industries, it is possible to care about more than one thing, but this thread is specifically about retail staff. Yes, other industries have Boxing Day working but that doesn't make it okay for all industries to have it. It is not a race to the bottom.

NailsNeedDoing · 26/12/2019 13:09

I can’t see the big drama about retail staff, what makes them so special compared to all the other non emergency services that work today?

It’s only a day, and one that comes straight after a guaranteed day off for retail staff. Christmas is horrible for a lot of people, having the shops open as usual is a good thing for them, and I think that’s more important than shop staff having two extra days off at Christmas. Pretty much all of us have to deal with restrictions on when we can have holiday, it’s really not that big a deal.

HoHoHoik · 26/12/2019 13:10

In the age of internet shopping there is absolutely no need for stores to be open on Boxing Day, people can shop the sales online if they must shop.

ManonBlackbeak · 26/12/2019 13:11

I will never understand why anyone would want to get up at silly O clock in the morning on Boxing Day to stand in a queue outside Next, who’s clothes are overpriced shit?

Please get a life!

Mumof1andacat · 26/12/2019 13:13

My dh works for a food retailer. He got home 7pm xmas eve and was at work for 6am this morning. He is the store manager so it's not just those lower down the chain working silly hours. He'll be at work new years day too. We have been together 16yrs and it's always like this. Luckily 6th s his last day so no retail. No need for shops to be open like they are these days over xmas period

Dixiechickonhols · 26/12/2019 13:13

A lot of people don’t celebrate though or are students glad of money. I worked in a factory one year I was at university. Walked to work was still home to see family who came over Boxing Day evening. Was quite happy to work. Forcing people to take shifts who don’t want to is wrong but there is a large Boundary milk outlet store near here that is open today until 8pm. Employs lots of young female students, lots are Muslim. If they want to work then I can’t see harm.

HoHoHoik · 26/12/2019 13:19

I can’t see the big drama about retail staff, what makes them so special compared to all the other non emergency services that work today?

As pointed out several times, it's not just about retail staff but this specific thread is about retail staff so that is why the discussion is centred on them.

Most shops have extended opening hours in the run up to Christmas and for the sales, shopping centre near us stays open until 10pm from mid-November to mid-January. Staff are often working additional hours alongside seasonal staff to cover these extra hours. Customers can be particularly rude during this period as they vent their Christmas frustrations on the staff, I've seen people swearing at staff, speaking to them like dirt, and basically acting like arseholes. Then to be expected in at work for 5am on a day when there is no public transport and taxis cost extra (the metered fare plus 50% round here) so you're effectively working for less than you'd get on a normal shift is a pisstake.

Do Next still have the rule in staff contracts where they dock your wages and/or sack you if you don't turn in for Boxing Day? A friend had a seasonal job there several years ago and was told at interview that if she did not show up on Boxing Day then her entire pay for the week would be withheld and she would be instantly dismissed. They had to stay for three hours after closing time on Christmas Eve to get the shop ready for the sale and they were expected in at work for 4am on Boxing Day.

NeedAnExpert · 26/12/2019 13:20

In the age of internet shopping there is absolutely no need for stores to be open on Boxing Day, people can shop the sales online if they must shop

You know that still involves people working Xmas day and Boxing Day, right?

HoHoHoik · 26/12/2019 13:20

No it doesn't, orders can be dispatched once manned business resumes on the 27th.