Extended trading hours have been approved for a raft of key shopping days
South Australians will be able to head to the suburbs for extended Christmas and Boxing Day trading. But another decision means thousands of workers will have less to spend.
SA News
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Boxing Day sales in suburban Adelaide will again be allowed with the Treasurer Rob Lucas approving a raft of extended shopping hours.
All stores across Adelaide will also be able to trade until midnight on ‘Black Friday’, November 27, to kick off what the Treasurer hopes will be a multi-million injection in the state’s retail sector.
But the Boxing Day trading is expected to draw the ire of thousands of retail workers, and their powerful union, who will get Saturday penalty rates the day after Christmas instead of the full public holiday penalty rates.
Mr Lucas has used a ministerial power to approve the new trading hours that will include:
– Boxing Day trading from 9am to 5pm for suburban shopping centres
– Additional hours on Sunday mornings in suburban shopping centres in the lead up to Christmas and the day after Boxing Day
– Trading beyond 9pm to on the Thursday, Friday and Wednesday before Christmas
– Black Friday trading beyond 9pm
The changes raise the possibility of a marathon 45 hours of shopping up until 9pm on Christmas Eve.
Mr Lucas said extended shop trading would provide a huge ‘shot in the arm’ to the local economy.
“We saw massive support last year for extended shop trading, with tens of thousands of South
Australians turning out right across the city and suburbs on Boxing Day and also Black Friday, which has become the unofficial start of the Christmas trading season,” said Mr Lucas.
“We expect similar scenes this year, which will provide an enormous boost to the economy as we continue to recover from COVID-19.”
The success of last year has been disputed by the State Opposition leader Peter Malinauskas who pointed to Australian Bureau of Statistics data that showed there had been a drop-off in December retail sales growth in the past two years.
Mr Lucas said all employees working during the extended hours will do so on a strictly voluntary basis.
The union representing retail and fast food workers wanted Boxing Day to be declared a public holiday on the Saturday it falls on – in addition to the Monday that it automatically gets shifted to when it lands on the weekend.
Mr Lucas has rejected the proposal pointing out Saturday penalty rates would still apply to Boxing Day this year.
The union’s proposal would have meant for an adult retail worker the decision would make $21.40 difference per hour – or $170 for the eight hour shift.