The Christmas Day and New Year's Day Trading (Scotland) Act 2007 gives the Scottish Government the power to make an order by statutory instrument to close large shops on New Year's Day. Usdaw has called on the Scottish Government to apply the relevant section of the Act for the last 14 years and welcomed the decision of the Government to consult on this matter.
New Year's Day in Scotland is a special day, but this is not reflected in the experience of many retail workers, who are often required to work on this day. Usdaw surveyed 1,473 of its Scottish members on their experiences of working over New Year 2018/19, and the results were clear:
· 99 per cent of members agree that stores in Scotland should close on New Year's Day.
· 79 per cent said that they are not happy to work on New Year's Day or 2 January.
· 74 per cent said they spend too little time with their loved ones over New Year.
· 72 per cent of members reported their store being fairly or very quiet on New Year's Day.
Usdaw General Secretary Paddy Lillis said: “Usdaw members work incredibly hard during the festive period and are exhausted by Christmas Day. Many are only able to take one or two days off. An additional day off will give retail workers in Scotland the opportunity to rest and recuperate at the end of the busiest time of year.
“Working on New Year's Day affects retail workers' family lives, their ability to relax, unwind and enjoy the day. Furthermore, retail workers face significant difficulties in being able to work on New Year's Day as a result of a lack of public transport and childcare provision.
“Usdaw believes that now is the time to enact this legislation and give Scottish retail workers a decent break over New Year. The majority of workers in other sectors in Scotland get to enjoy the day off, and retail workers should not be excluded from this.”
Usdaw Regional Secretary for Scotland Tracy Gilbert said: ““As key workers, shopworkers have worked long hours in difficult circumstances throughout the pandemic, faced unprecedented levels of abuse and worried about catching the virus.
“However, this is not just a campaign for the pandemic, our members have for many years demanded a proper break after the extremely busy and stressful shopping period in the runup to Christmas. After a 14-year delay this consultation is a step forward in our campaign to get a proper break for shopworkers over the festive period.”
