Treasurer Rob Lucas allows Anzac Day trading at suburban supermarkets, extends 24-hour option for another 30 days
Anzac Day shopping will be allowed at suburban supermarkets for the first time, and the option to open 24 hours on other days has also been extended.
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Supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths will be able to trade in Adelaide suburbs on Anzac Day for the first time in South Australian history this year.
The morning of Anzac Day will continue to be off limits but trading will be allowed for supermarkets, big or small, from 12 noon until 9pm.
Treasurer Rob Lucas will today use ministerial powers to allow the trading, that is usually confined to the CBD, in the name of social distancing to cope with the coronavirus.
He will also extend a 30-day exemption period that gave all supermarkets the option to trade 24 hours a day on Monday to Friday, 12am to 9pm on Saturday, and 9am to 9pm on Sunday.
The State Government went to the election with a strong deregulated shop trading hours agenda but Mr Lucas said the latest move was squarely focused on helping with the response to the coronavirus.
“The health advice is pretty clear,” Mr Lucas said.
“Health experts support the extension of the hours because it allows social distancing and spreading customers over a longer period of time.
“It is all part of the big jigsaw puzzle trying to flatten the curve. It has been one element of a total package of measures which have been introduced to give some flexibility to people.”
Mr Lucas said various Drakes, Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and other independent stores had taken advantage of the flexibility of his first decision.
“Coles, for example, has recently extended its opening hours to 10pm Monday to Friday, and until 9pm on weekends, in addition to opening two hours earlier on a Sunday morning and introducing a dedicated community hour each weekday from 7am to 8am. Woolworths has also has introduced a dedicated community hour from 7am weekdays, is currently trading later on weekends and opening earlier on Sundays.”
Mr Lucas said restrictions on Anzac Day morning trading remained government policy and all the current exemptions had been made in response to the coronavirus.
Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said the fact that Mr Lucas was able to make exemptions under extraordinary circumstances highlighted the laws governing shop trading hours were right.
Last month SDA secretary Josh Peak, who represents supermarket workers, said the deregulated hours did not make sense because supermarkets were closing early in order to get stock replenished.
The new exemption will apply from Monday April 20 to Tuesday, May 19 inclusive.
Mr Lucas said employees working during the extended hours would do so strictly on a voluntary basis.