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

[MargaritaThyme]

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?

Ah, but you see, little-known fact, people in retail are working class, meaning that actually we live to work. So we need to work on boxing day and Christmas day. In fact, we love it so much we would take a pay cut to work those days.

Oh wait, the staff dependent on public transport are already taking a pay cut to get to work on boxing day, in the form of taxi fares!

The people who want to buy stuff in Waitrose on boxing day are people from the live-to-work classes, so they need pre-set holidays you don't have to book off.

Love how people can't get their head round the idea that someone might need the money even at plain time.

And calling other people privileged into the bargain

😅

A lot of people go and watch the football on Boxing day, there must be people working to facilitate this.

Have you ever had to get the taxi to work on a Boxing Day, paying bank holiday rates, just to be paid the legal minimum wage per hour?

Something about your post tells me you haven't.

I'll be using my holiday pay to cover Boxing Day. That's what it's for, and if it's not used, you lose it. They don't give me the money in hand at the end of the financial year.

I can say from experience that no, most people won't tip hospitality staff, especially at Christmas. Despite the fact that everyone says that they do.

But I agree with the rest of your post. If you dare ask for a day off, then clearly you don't need the money. I remember trying to actually use my annual leave for a holiday we'd booked and I was told that if I could afford a holiday then clearly I have plenty of money and don't need more shifts.... The logic is insane

YANBU OP
However, this step forward needs to be balanced against the growing trend for restaurants/pubs to open for Christmas day lunch. Not fair on staff imo.

Yeah lol - and the virtual physical fights between “wealthy” women, in Harrods, fighting over dinner plates, was always on the news…😉

Yes and I've worked in, and subsequently employed people, in retail for over 30 years.

As it comes up to Christmas time we ask for people to volunteer for Christmas shifts, if we fill them we open. If we don't, we don't. And we pay people for unused holidays if that's what they'd rather. We used to open on Christmas Day as well but we stopped offering it because we didn't want to go in and supervise

last shop i worked in didn’t open over Christmas so you didn’t get paid unless you used holiday

independent shop so could make its own rules

Should say that was Christmas 2022 😀

Most shops won’t close Boxing Day if the demand to shop is there. So if you want shops to close Boxing Day for retail staff to have a break with their families the easiest way to ensure this is stay home. If it’s not cost effective they won’t open.

CatamaranViper

I can say from experience that no, most people won't tip hospitality staff, especially at Christmas.

that's horrendous! I thought that was the point of Christmas Day opening in restaurants. Sometimes I really hate people.

Oh lovely, we have management here. Gosh, we are so privileged.

If you have experience of losing half your day's pay on taxi fares, why did you need to be explicitly pressed on the subject to acknowledge it happened? Why were you pretending that being required to work Boxing Day was an unalloyed financial positive?

Sorry, my point was in my office and my sector, we don't have to plan to be off on those days as everyone will be off and will be paid, without eating into annual leave entitlement.

I absolutely get the point of the calling out of "privilege" as it never occurred to me that retail workers would need to take Boxing Day leave out of annual entitlement.

What about people that want to work over Christmas though?

Yeah I mean if you could show me where I said that ever, that'd be great. And not a manager, we own our business

My DB worked for Currys for a while, he had to work Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, it was crazy!
You'd think if you do Christmas you get new year off or vice versa but nope, mandatory hours, everyone in!

Sadly I don't think these shops are doing anything special. All shops barring local conveniences were traditionally shut on boxing day. It was these big shops who began to open. All they are doing is undoing the work they did in previous years. They should have never started expecting people to work unnecessarily on boxing day a d then a few years later passing it off as a good deed not doing it.

What about people in hospitality, my son is a chef, I haven't been able to have a Christmas day with him for 15 years. He works such long hours, Christmas day, Boxing day, New Years Eve, new years day and every bank holiday.

About 10 years ago when I worked retail (close on Christmas Eve, all day boxing day) no one and I mean no one was calling for shops to be closed. Why has everyone suddenly changed viewpoint? People who are out shopping boxing day aren't always panic buying or buying for the sake of it, have you thought about people trying to escape arguments with family and friends or victims of DV? older people who don't have any company? or people just plain bored? Just my view

As a child of the 1960s I remember reports on the TV of people queuing up outside stores at Christmas waiting for the Boxing Day sales to start.

Having worked many Boxing Days in retail over the years I totally agree. Loads of other shops will be open and nobody is going to starve.

Why can’t it just be made law that working on bank holidays or Sundays has minimum wage plus fifty percent? Then people would be fighting to work them

Nothing would open

Working in retail over Xmas night be classed as fun for younger people who don't have the added responsibilities of running a home, looking after children, family and other relatives, but for many it's a huge strain.
So many posts on here saying "l worked in retail years ago when l was younger and loved it" good for you, but for the majority it's a form of torture.
Also the stores that are closing will make staff take it as unpaid or Annual leave. Don't be fooled into thinking they actually care about the wellbeing of their staff.