to think it is good that supermarkets/express/garages are all closed christmas day

[WillowTit]

i am sure in previous years shops would open for a couple of hours
discovered that we dont have enough wine but apart from premium overpriced stores shops are shut
and major garages too
i have enough petrol,
we will manage without the extra wine
i am glad the shops are shut
aibu

my point exactly! although that opinion seems to be strangely unpopular and arrogant allegedly
weird

Some people actually want to work on Christmas Day for various reasons. My mum always does for one.

According to the 2011 Census, Christianity remains the largest religion in the UK, with 59.5% of the population identifying as Christian.

indeed
does she work for tesco?
is she upset to be not working?

When I did my Christmas Ocado shop, once I’d planned the special meals I was still a bit under the Christmas min spend (only two of us here - and DS at his dad’s for Christmas dinner)

i put a couple of boxes of loo roll in to top it up. Shan’t buy any more until after Easter I think.

i like the shops being shut. And I’m alone today

Exactly. Life doesn’t often go as planned. So shops being open is quite useful.

actually as regards wine, we have beer, so i think we will be ok, we can replenish tomorrow
and we have a corner shop
and it is only ONE day
but i am not convincing people and no one has convinced me otherwise

Not everyone has family or someone to spend Christmas with and would be much happier working today.

FFS honestly not everyone lives in your perfect world, where you never need anything because you've planned for it. Life doesn't always go to plan. Its not about sucking it up.

Sometimes there's an emergency, most of which are unplanned. If I had to drive to say Scotland because a relative had suddenly become seriously ill I wouldn't have enough petrol so I'd have to find a petrol station to fill up. If I had a child who had become unwell I'd have to find a pharmacy to get medicine.

Seriously can you not see past your own little world?

there will be garages open and pharmacists @XxSideshowAuntSallyx

would they? what in tesco?

It's YOUR "one day." For millions of others in this country and billions around the globe, it's an ordinary Wednesday.

The world doesn't stop turning for Christian festivals, nor should it.

So weary of the smarmy sanctimony about shop closures. There's nothing immoral or antisocial about running a business and catering to consumer demand.

I'm self employed. I'd have been happy to work over the Christmas period if there was any demand for it. It's just another day as far as I am concerned. People are different and so are their circumstances.

that is ok for small businesses but big business can afford to give their staff a day off @BettyBardMacDonald

Exactly.

Our local Turkish restaurant put that they were open today on Facebook and about 5 people came at them saying they are out of order and should give staff a rest 😆

Christmas Day is not for everyone and shouldn't be completely shut down everywhere. I wish people would be more understanding!

It's not beyond the realms of possibility that some of those employees would have been happy to work given the opportunity to do so, especially if they'd been paid enhanced rates.

Those people should mind their own business.

The big costcutter is open opposite me,car park is full,I won’t open my blinds so I can pretend it doesn’t look like a normal day.

Double wage went for those kinds of roles a long time ago. Some employers may still pay it but I imagine it’s vanishingly rare.

I used to quite enjoy working Christmas day (ambulance service). Good atmosphere and a comparatively q-word day (I'd do anything in my power to avoid a New Year's Eve, Mad Friday or Halloween shift, though). I appreciated having the petrol stations open on the 25th to nip into and grab some snacks and fuel on the way to work!

One thing that's occurred to me today is pharmacies; I've never needed one on Christmas day before but I had to increase my seizure medication and I'll run out tomorrow evening because of the increased dose - my bad for not being more prepared but still adjusting to the new dose! - and I've had to search quite a bit to find a pharmacy open tomorrow. It's a sort of weird mix of medical and retail so not sure why I expected them to be open Christmas day 😅

I'm just about old enough to remember shops being closed every Sunday and from mid day on Wednesdays and honestly it was absolutely fine. They started staying open purely to make more money, nothing else. You're being very dramatic.

Well yes, why not? My family are dead and I’m also a supermarket worker. Before I met my partner I would much prefer to have been working than sitting home alone Christmas Day.

what aobut your colleagues @Berlinlover

"I'm just about old enough to remember shops being closed every Sunday and from mid day on Wednesdays and honestly it was absolutely fine. They started staying open purely to make more money, nothing else. You're being very dramatic."

A) there's nothing wrong with making more money. As a shareholder who, like millions, is depending on my investments to fund my old age/retirement, I want companies to be as profitable as possible.

B) it was "absolutely fine" for YOU, not for everyone. We don't all work Mon-Friday, we aren't all SAHM who can shop any day, and we aren't all Christian. Many people worship on Friday or Saturday. Should everything be shuttered on those days, as well?

C) we're in a 24/7 global economy now; this isn't 1970. Consumers demand more options and should not be restricted by smarmy, outdated notions. We all don't revere "quiet Sundays" sitting around doing nothing. I have activities and work on Saturday, and prefer to do my errands on Sundays.