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Original poster

To say ‘well done’ to the bosses of M&S, Waitrose, Lidl & Aldi

381 replies

MargaritaThyme · 23/12/2023 00:00

For deciding not to open their stores on Boxing Day, thereby giving their staff, who have been working very hard through December, a proper break with their loved ones?

OP posts:
MissTrip82 · 23/12/2023 10:18

Goodness I loved working Boxing Day in retail. And Sundays. Those were some of the few times I wasn’t on a full time placement so I could earn the money to pay my rent and food. Helped fund me though medical school and now as I work over Christmas for the 15th year I’ll be really happy about the small number of coffee shops that open so I can grab a coffee on my way in.

People who work 9-5 type jobs tend to see this very differently, I find.

MidnightMeltdown · 23/12/2023 10:21

I think you are a bit presumptuous

I expect most of them get double pay, or at least time and a half, for Boxing Day and many will be students and/or seasonal workers who would rather have the hours.

Im sure lots of people don't do anything special on Boxing Day and would rather have the money.

MidnightMeltdown · 23/12/2023 10:23

Adastra23 · 23/12/2023 10:15

My son works for M&S. He either loses the hours for Boxing Day or works them elsewhere in the week. He’s working until 10pm on Christmas Eve, store closes at 4, to have the shop ready for the 27th.

He’d rather work Boxing Day on the bank holiday rate. The boards of these organisations have done this for purely commercial reasons.Not for the staff. Not everyone celebrates Christmas or has family to spend it with.

Yep. I used to have to work late Christmas Eve when I was a student and worked in retail, and I would much rather have worked Boxing Day for extra pay

wronginalltherightways · 23/12/2023 10:30

CatamaranViper · 23/12/2023 10:17

And yet many of the people who are praising the shops for closing to allow staff some family time will be visiting pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels and never bat an eye at all the staff working there.

Spot on.

RaininSummer · 23/12/2023 10:37

Catamaran.. if hospitality venues are closed when people can actually visit them then they would surely go bust. Anyone working hospitality must know they are the busiest times.

agentcooperinthewhitelodge · 23/12/2023 10:40

And yet many of the people who are praising the shops for closing to allow staff some family time will be visiting pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels and never bat an eye at all the staff working there

Yep, apparently benevolence only extends to retail workers!

Willmafrockfit · 23/12/2023 10:41

or you could live in Brunei where it is illegal to celebrate christmas,

CatamaranViper · 23/12/2023 10:44

RaininSummer · 23/12/2023 10:37

Catamaran.. if hospitality venues are closed when people can actually visit them then they would surely go bust. Anyone working hospitality must know they are the busiest times.

Same applies to shops though. If poor retail workers deserve time off to be with family, why not hospitality staff as well?

walkingintothefuture · 23/12/2023 10:49

CatamaranViper · 23/12/2023 10:44

Same applies to shops though. If poor retail workers deserve time off to be with family, why not hospitality staff as well?

Show quote history

Yes there is a very odd hypocrisy on this thread. Shop workers deserve time with their families but warehouse workers, hospitality staff, pubs etc don't?

Don't those people have families too? what's so special about retail staff that their time off is more important than other people, IDGI

CheekyLittleElf · 23/12/2023 10:51

Snowyballs · 23/12/2023 01:19

Only the very privileged could assume that not working on the 26th is what retail workers want

Edited

I'm a retailer worker and I'm thrilled we're closed. So is the rest of the team. We work very hard all year round but this week and next week are insane. We're a small team in a fairly large supermarket and most of us do 5x 10 hour shifts a week. We're so excited for a couple of days at home with our families.

RampantIvy · 23/12/2023 10:53

Given that shops are open on Sundays and just about every household has a fridge/freezer I fail to see why supermarkets have to open on Boxing Day.

Adastra23 · 23/12/2023 10:55

@CatamaranViperquite!

OhwhyOY · 23/12/2023 10:58

I actually disagree - whilst it is great to give staff a break for many the opportunity of earning double or triple time is really valued. I know it was when I worked in supermarkets/retail as a young person. That said forcing staff to come in is not good. I think we should all be able to cope with the shops being closed for two days though.

OneTC · 23/12/2023 11:00

We open on boxing day. Everyone working wants to work. Our staff want the hours

nopuppiesallowed · 23/12/2023 11:01

FriedasCarLoad · 23/12/2023 00:36

Couldn't agree more - only the most vital shops (petrol stations and some pharmacies) should open on Boxing Day.

This is a less popular view, but I'd love to return to that for Sundays, too.

Agree on both. I can see why people feel the need to shop in big supermarkets on Sundays, but if an employee wants to have Sundays off, would that impact their progression within the company? And big supermarkets being open on Sundays probably has a huge, negative impact on small, local shops, too. For many (not all) people, Sundays are the day of the week when you can do things together as most people work from Monday to Friday.

Whatevershallidowithmylife · 23/12/2023 11:04

I loved working 1st,2nd, 25th and 26th - tips were phenomenal plus double time - brilliant! That was hospitality though but don’t see why it differs from retail? Our Morrisons is open Nee Years Day so as we don’t celebrate NY my DM, sisters and I will catch up in the cafe that day.

Adastra23 · 23/12/2023 11:04

@RampantIvy, as you said, most, but not all. What about people working in the run up to Christmas, to keep transport running, hospitals working, bins emptied? What about people with no family who rely on shops for human connections?

I trust that you and your family will not be using public services, bars or restaurants on Boxing Day. Oh, and your utilities, who keeps your freezer running and the news being read? God forbid you need a hospital, fingers crossed you can self administer the care you’ll need.

How and when do you think the shelves will be restocked for when you deem it ok for shops to open?

Adastra23 · 23/12/2023 11:08

Absolutely this. My son is now working Christmas Eve until 10pm to make up for ‘not working’ on Boxing Day!! He misses out on his CE plans so the MN holy can pretend to care!

Evoke59 · 23/12/2023 11:17

@Snippysocks and @FriedasCarLoad Couldn't agree more - only the most vital shops (petrol stations and some pharmacies) should open on Boxing Day.

Petrol Stations? Why are these vital? You have all year to fill up. Even Sundays!

Where will you be driving to? I thought Boxing Day, in your ivory towers of privilege, is for snuggling with family and harking back to the good old days of the 50s when women would be too busy boiling up turkey bones and waiting on their husbands to consider having their own careers or lives outside of the homes.

This is a less popular view, but I'd love to return to that for Sundays, too.

Can we assume you lead by example and use no shops, services or leisure facilities on Sundays? No, I thought not!

RampantIvy · 23/12/2023 11:19

I trust that you and your family will not be using public services, bars or restaurants on Boxing Day.

No, we won't @Adastra23. I won't need to shop for ages as I have sufficient provisions to last for the best part of a week.

What about people working in the run up to Christmas, to keep transport running, hospitals working, bins emptied?

I'm not sure what point you are trying to make here. People who work for the essential services know what they are signing up for. DD works in a pharmacy and only gets two days off at Christmas, but she knew this when she started working there. Bins don't get emptied round here on Boxing day BTW.

MyrtlethePurpleTurtle · 23/12/2023 11:21

MrsSkylerWhite · 23/12/2023 00:13

Yes! Noticed this a week ago and was really pleased.

When I was a child, shops were closed for 7 days. It was fine.

When I was a child/young (1970s/1980s), the Boxing Day Sales and queuing for them was a huge queue and reported on in the news. Tbe people getting up early or queuing all night for a cheap television

SapphireSeptember · 23/12/2023 11:22

The shop I work in is always closed on Boxing Day and New Year's Day, as well as Christmas and Easter, most of our customers are off for two weeks over Christmas, so they don't need our services! It's perfectly doable, and our hours just get moved around to accommodate it. The downside is on bank holidays we're still open normal hours.
Unlike when I worked at Sainsbury's, and had to use holiday if my shift would have been on Christmas Day, even though the shop was closed.
And another rant. Bank holidays were originally invented so that people working in banks and shops could have the day off. People in banks get the day off, as do most other people, people working in hospitality and retail still have to work. 😡

Adastra23 · 23/12/2023 11:24

@RampantIvy same for retail staff. It’s no secret that retailers open when it’s profitable to do so. They’re only open 24/7 because staff are replenishing so it makes sense to sell too. It’s not for your convenience.

As for the bins, they aren’t emptied “around here” either on Boxing Day, but the operatives will be required to work on Saturday and extended shifts to make up the time. All your consumables waste has to be cleared. Sounds like you’ll have a lot.

CatamaranViper · 23/12/2023 11:26

I worked in Primark back in the 00s and had to work boxing day. The sheer amount of people who'd come up to the tills with their giant baskets overflowing and tell me how 'shocking' it was that we were open on boxing day and what a shame it was that I wasn't with my family.

When I worked in hotels, I used to run the F&B department and worked Xmas day a few years on the bounce. I had a family who'd come in on Xmas day for their meal and every year they'd ask if I didn't have a family and they couldn't believe I had to work on Xmas day ...

1975wasthebest · 23/12/2023 11:30

It’s all P.R isn’t it, you can bet your last penny those companies will have factored in their forecasted loss of profits for that day and will have compensated in other ways (how much have they made this year from selling our data from our loyalty card apps?).

They don’t give a shit about us or their employees, just their own fat salaries and paying dividends to their shareholders.

So no, I won’t be applauding them, because I’m not naive.