Trade union Usdaw has called on the Scottish Government to make New Year’s Day a statutory holiday for retail workers in large stores.
The Christmas Day and New Year’s Day Trading (Scotland) Act 2007 prohibits trading in most large shops on Christmas Day and gave powers to the Scottish Government to stop the opening of those stores on New Year’s Day – powers that have never been used.
Tracy Gilbert, Usdaw Regional Secretary for Scotland, commented: “Our members are deeply disappointed with the attitude of the Scottish Government. Warm words and sympathy from the First Minister mean little when they refuse to enact powers given to them to stop the opening of large stores on New Year’s Day.
“They are clearly not listening to the 98% of Scottish shopworkers who want stores to close. In fact, all the SNP in Government have done is stand back while New Year’s Day trading has grown, forcing more staff into work and away from their families on 1 January.
“Retail staff work incredibly hard all year round, but it is particularly busy and stressful throughout December. So they deserve to be able to spend time with family and friends. Hogmanay and New Year is a special holiday in Scotland, but this is not reflected in the experience of many retail workers.
Gilbert urged retailers trading on Ne’erday to ensure their stores are only staffed with genuine volunteers.
