"Blue Laws" at least give some retail workers relief for Turkey Day

[TheHuckster]

Local Laws in RI and Massachusetts Forbid Stores from Operating before Midnight on Friday

Blue Laws have historically been regarded as outdated, since they are more associated with how stores operated on Sundays for religious observance reasons. However, there are some Blue Laws that remain which at least preserve Thanksgiving tradition as a time that most people can spend with their families instead of having them give into animalistic instinct to step on eachother to get the last New Furby at 50% off.

[Andara Bledin]

I signed a Change.org petition to tell Target to not start Black Friday before midnight.

Personally, I think that the entire event of black Friday is a blight upon sensibility and refuse to have anything to do with any of the physical sales.

^-.-^

[AdminAssistant]

There was a reddit thread on this that was interesting...while some people said, "Think of the poor retail workers!" Most retail workers said, "Think of my holiday pay!!" For someone who needs every last penny, the store being open on a holiday only means more money. Not everyone has a big family to celebrate with, and there's no rule that you HAVE to celebrate Thanksgiving on Thursday.

Personally, I think it's all nonsense, but it was interesting to hear the other perspective.

[HYHYBT]

If the store could be totally staffed by those who *want* to work that day, that would be fine.

We all know that's not what will happen, at least in most cases.

[TheHuckster]

Not everyone has a big family to celebrate with, and there's no rule that you HAVE to celebrate Thanksgiving on Thursday.

So what other day can you celebrate it that won't affect others' schedules? You're almost certainly working the other four days. Generally speaking the only people who are working on Thursday are police officers, firefighters, hospital staff, and retail staff. Isn't there something a little... off about that? I think even the radio stations generally operate with a skeleton staff and an automated prescheduled playlist.

[Jetfire]

Well the list does seem to get longer and longer... You get as mentioned, the EMS workers; Police, Fire, Hospital staff, Ambulances, 911 operators.

Many pharmacies also stay open, or have hours on the "days of rest" too.

But you also get the convienance industry... 7-11 workers, gas station attendents, etc...

Then you have Restaurants, they tend to be open as well, even if most people are in a turkey fugue.

Hotel workers will be working, including cleaning staff.

Airline workers, from the ticketing agents, to the luggage handlers, to the security agents to the mechanics, traffic controllers, flight attendants and pilots. Same goes for Bus and Train and Ferries and Cruise ships too.

Taxis are running, as is (in some cities) mass transit (on a limited schedule usually granted).

Border agents work 24/365.

Support agents of all sorts (including Turkey Support from Butterball).

Operators of all sorts, including relay operators.

Bar operators too (and that gets into a hazy area; when does "Thursday" start? Should bars close down at 12:01 Thursday morning for a day of rest, even if they're open till 2AM every other day?)

So, I think my point is, in the modern world, there's a LOT of activity going on, even on the "Days of Rest", and not just emergency folk. The distinction of who should be allowed to operate and who shouldn't gets fuzzier and fuzzier as you try to define it better, and often ends up falling apart if you try to limit it too much. (Before Nova Scotia dropped almost all of it's blue laws a few years back, the big stores were internally subdividing into smaller 'stores' that were only really divided by temporary blockades to get around the size limitations to be allowed to open on Sundays)

My personal views (and granted I don't work retail, and I live in a province with Blue Laws limiting operating hours), is that there shouldn't be any imposed rules on when a business can and can't open. It should be the choice of the business to figure out what hours best support its clientele and personnel and operate accordingly. If a shop figures it can survive by only being open from 2200 to 0400 on days of the full moon, then give it a shot; it shouldn't matter that that day may fall on an arbitrary date on the calender.

If you can get the people to work for you for those hours, then go for it.

[bex1218]

As long as the employees don't mind it. I'm flexible during the holidays. I like to be a loner around my family.

I guess it helps that my employer is good about giving hours to everyone while letting those who have family pick an earlier shift.

[TheHuckster]

So, I think my point is, in the modern world, there's a LOT of activity going on, even on the "Days of Rest", and not just emergency folk. The distinction of who should be allowed to operate and who shouldn't gets fuzzier and fuzzier as you try to define it better, and often ends up falling apart if you try to limit it too much.

Yet the line falls well before retail worker at Walmart who is the only line of defense between flat screen TVs at 50% and hundreds of stampeding SCs, some of whom will end up in the hospital.

To me it's just a reflection of just how petty and materialistic a lot of Americans have become, to the point where instead of being with family and having a nice quiet dinner as has been the tradition for decades they're willing to stampede into a store and fight a bloody war over who came to the proverbial blue light special first.

In a way it's sort of a tangent to the other thread we have here about who "started" this culture, Walmart or the consumers?

If you can get the people to work for you for those hours, then go for it.

Of course you can get them to work for you. Just threaten they'll be out of a job and give them time and a half (not even double time) and they'll do it. A lot of them will do so very reluctantly, though.

[BlaqueKatt]

Well the list does seem to get longer and longer....

Any sort of laboratory is usually open 24/7/365-you want safe food? I get to work, as do my coworkers. A good number of the testing we do has very narrow windows for the actual testing to be done after enrichment. Samples are set up the day they arrive by contract, and GLP(Good Laboratory Practice).

[crashhelmet]

I work in the Network Operations Center for an ISP. I'm working on Turkey Day myself. Gawd forbid the Internet should be down at all that day.

[Lace Neil Singer]

There's internet shopping now; so why do shops have to be open so much over holidays anyway?

I have no objection to people working on those days, but only if they WANT to work them. Not if they're being threatened with losing their job, or being put down against their will to work those days. The local supermarket is opening on Boxing Day this year, and a lot of people are unhappy about it and refusing to work. The union is also up in arms about it, cuz the last time they did this, about ten customers turned up all day and none of them spent more than £10.

It's opening cuz the manager wants it; nope, he's not going to be coming in.

[AdminAssistant]

I noticed that most of the local grocery stores are going to open tomorrow, but close at 3 or 4 pm. To me, that's a nice balance between "be open for customers who need X supply for meal" and "let employees be with family."

[TheHuckster]

I noticed that most of the local grocery stores are going to open tomorrow, but close at 3 or 4 pm. To me, that's a nice balance between "be open for customers who need X supply for meal" and "let employees be with family."

I wonder how many SCs are going to arrive at 3:50 and stick around for an hour because they can't decide on which seasoning to get.

[gremcint]

There's internet shopping now; so why do shops have to be open so much over holidays anyway?

that's exactly why. The brick and mortar store is basically competing against the internet store who's main advantage is convience. Even in the same company the physical store and web store are competitors.

[HYHYBT]

I wonder how many SCs are going to arrive at 3:50 and stick around for an hour because they can't decide on which seasoning to get.

Or can't find that one thing that only goes in one recipe, which they only use once a year because it's trouble to make and nobody likes it but they ABSOLUTELY HAVE to have on Thanksgiving because they always do.