Industry association, Retail NZ, has called for Auckland Council to ignore a staff report that recommends shops be kept shut over the Easter holidays.
Councillors are set to vote on the issue tomorrow after the government delegated decision-making to local councils last year.
Retail NZ said consumers want to be able to shop on Easter Sunday and that according to research conducted by Nielsen for Retail NZ, 57 per cent of Aucklanders engaged in some sort of commercial activity at Easter Sunday this year.
“Despite the fact that most shops are required by law to be closed, the majority of Aucklanders still like to get out and about on Easter Sunday,” the association said in a statement.
“Aucklanders are keen to spend their Easter Sunday shopping online, in one of the businesses that is allowed to open, going to a cafe or restaurant; or a garden centre. These are all commercial activities but are often done as part of an outing with friends and family.”
According to Retail NZ, the Auckland Council’s own statistically representative research by Colmar Brunton found that 55 per cent of Aucklanders would like to see more shops open on Easter Sunday.
“Under changes to the law last year, the Government created a framework that allows councils to allow, but not require businesses in their districts the right to open on Easter Sunday, while providing a cast-iron guarantee that no employee can be forced to work, and that no retail business can be forced to open,” the group stated.
“Shop employees now have specific protection under law so they can’t be forced to work, while no protections apply to employees in any business outside retail.”
Retail NZ stated there is a host of exemptions that “made a mockery of the ban on opening shops” including garden centres being allowed to open, but not hardware shops with a garden centre attached; small grocery stores are allowed to open, but not supermarkets; and any shop is allowed to open if it’s located on Parnell Road, but not if it’s located on the Onehunga Mall.
“Auckland Council has the opportunity to create real choice for retail employees, shoppers and businesses as to whether shops are allowed to open on Easter Sunday, and it’s disappointing that council employees are seeking to deny people from making their own choices about how they spend Easter Sunday.”
