Why there is no such thing as a 24 Hour Tesco Store

[Chie]

I don't follow the irony: Labour claims to support the workforce,so how would insisting that workers be guaranteed at least one day off a week, or be compensated for working on it, be inconsistent with that?

It's ironic because Labour claims to be the party of progress, yet they're clearly the ones holding it back.

[Sput]

I don't follow the irony: Labour claims to support the workforce,so how would insisting that workers be guaranteed at least one day off a week, or be compensated for working on it, be inconsistent with that?

It's ironic because Labour claims to be the party of progress, yet they're clearly the ones holding it back.

I suspect that's not their MAIN thrust chie. The clue is in the name. To suggest that opening shops 24/365.25 is progress and that what a political party does is a one-dimensional decision makes you seem incredibly naive, chie. In fact it sounds like you're just swallowing hyperbole.

[Nick Harvey]

Not wishing to question the Scots on their history, but I thought, traditionally, that both England and Scotland had Christmas Day as a holiday, but then England used to have Boxing Day, whilst Scotland had New Year's day instead.

[Chie]

I suspect that's not their MAIN thrust chie. The clue is in the name. To suggest that opening shops 24/365.25 is progress and that what a political party does is a one-dimensional decision makes you seem incredibly naive, chie. In fact it sounds like you're just swallowing hyperbole.

Perhaps I should've said 'yet in this case they're clearly the ones holding it back.'

Supermarkets, department stores, shopping centres and large shops like PC World and DFS would obviously like to open all day on Sundays, and a YouGov poll in 2006 suggested that 57% of people would like to see the Sunday trading act abolished. There's also the fact that people who work on Sundays currently get paid more than people who do the same job on weekdays, and that's a bit unequal. So yes, abolishing the law would be progress as far as most people are concerned.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5152800.stm

The law that bans large shops from opening on Christmas Day is also pointless because virtually none of them used to open on Christmas Day anyway. If ever there was an exercise in banning something for the sake of it, that was it! The law is also at odds with Labour's own equality policy, as Nick pointed out earlier on, as well as the popularly perceived notion that we're no longer supposed to be a Christian country. That's why it's so ironic.

[Sput]

So if every shop was open all day every day of the year you'd call that progress?

[Neil Jones]

I have always wondered why businesses with more than one branch in the area don't stagger their sunday opening hours e.g. when there are 3 large Tesco stores in Plymouth what's the point of them all opening 10:30-4:30? To me it would make perfect sense to have one doing 7AM-1PM, one 12PM-6PM, and one 5PM-11PM, between them providing full 7AM-11PM coverage.

Because Sunday Trading Laws dictate the only opening hours are between 10am and 6pm for a maximum period of six hours.

This also explains why Tesco is technically only 24hrs between 00:01 on Monday morning and 23:59 on Saturday night, because a time of 00:00 could be interpreted as belonging to the day either just gone or the day just starting.

I remember a few years ago when New Year fell on Monday and Tesco wanted to open at midnight to capitalise on the sales. Their lawyers specifically told them that to avoid any doubt and in order not to contravene Sunday Trading legislation, they should open not at midnight, but at one minute past midnight.

[Gavin Scott]

Not wishing to question the Scots on their history, but I thought, traditionally, that both England and Scotland had Christmas Day as a holiday, but then England used to have Boxing Day, whilst Scotland had New Year's day instead.

You're only a young man in the grand scheme of Scottish history, Nick.

I'm told that Christmas itself, being as it was a purely Religious festival, was banned for nearly 400 years until the 1950's in Scotland. The reason Christmas was not celebrated goes back to the time of John Knox in the 1580's - as it was seen to be papist in origin, and the ban was strictly enforced in law. I can't speak to the veracity of this information, but it seems to be confirmed on a couple of webpages.

It became a public holiday in Scotland in 1958. but many worked despite the holiday status.

[Nick Harvey]

Ah, yes, that makes sense.

So would my scenario fit the post-1958 situation for a few years then?

Then, when England got New Year's Day, did Scotland get Boxing Day or January 2nd?

[Gavin Scott]

Ah, yes, that makes sense.

So would my scenario fit the post-1958 situation for a few years then?

Then, when England got New Year's Day, did Scotland get Boxing Day or January 2nd?

Not sure, but that would make sense. There appears still to be disparity though.

According to the page I was reading, in 1997/98 and 2001/2002 there were strikes at Scottish banks because the bank staff were getting English holidays rather than the Scottish ones which have more time off at New Year.

[barcode]

Ah, yes, that makes sense.

So would my scenario fit the post-1958 situation for a few years then?

Then, when England got New Year's Day, did Scotland get Boxing Day or January 2nd?

Not sure, but that would make sense. There appears still to be disparity though.

According to the page I was reading, in 1997/98 and 2001/2002 there were strikes at Scottish banks because the bank staff were getting English holidays rather than the Scottish ones which have more time off at New Year.

h yes 2nd Jan V Good Friday, most Scottish bank staff don not care for Good Friday.

saying that half of scotland does not have Good Friday off, ( lothians and Edinburgh do) Most of Scotland also don;t take Easter monday off either

[Gavin Scott]

Ah, yes, that makes sense.

So would my scenario fit the post-1958 situation for a few years then?

Then, when England got New Year's Day, did Scotland get Boxing Day or January 2nd?

Not sure, but that would make sense. There appears still to be disparity though.

According to the page I was reading, in 1997/98 and 2001/2002 there were strikes at Scottish banks because the bank staff were getting English holidays rather than the Scottish ones which have more time off at New Year.

h yes 2nd Jan V Good Friday, most Scottish bank staff don not care for Good Friday.

saying that half of scotland does not have Good Friday off, ( lothians and Edinburgh do) Most of Scotland also don;t take Easter monday off either

*pfft*

I don't get any public holidays in this office. None.

That said they do give us 27 days, so I think that works out in my favour.