Underestimating today’s version of Thanksgiving

Long lines with people wrapping around department stores and malls on Thanksgiving night waiting just to get that “special item” has become a popular trend for all the wrong reasons.

We are in an age where things are in high demand and we are starting to underestimate the value of family time and giving workers off on an important holiday.

Yes, this “Thanksgiving night shopping” trend has been only going on for a few years, but there has been a lot of nationwide controversy regarding it as an “acceptable” thing to do.

The biggest coming from Tony Rohr, a Pizza Hut manager in Elkhart, Ind., who refused to open the restaurant on Thanksgiving and was fired because of it. It became a national headliner after the news broke since Rohr said he believed that the company should give the employees the entire day off.

Rohr’s actions are a classic example of why the major holiday seasons need to be adjusted and let workers have time off when it’s most important. Several retail workers even began working in the middle of the afternoon since the store they worked at opened at 5 or 6 Thanksgiving night. Some of those workers couldn’t even enjoy a full holiday gathering and meal with their families since they had to arrive at work early on top of some working a 12-hour day into Black Friday.

My girlfriend was at Galleria Mall around 8 p.m. and described the place as a “zoo.” She said that finding a parking spot was horrible and everyone was impatient to get the items they came for.

This is the kind of stuff you hear on Black Friday and closer to Christmas time, not on Thanksgiving until recently. Five years ago, you never heard of anyone shopping on Thanksgiving unless it was to buy a soda or a bag of chips at a 24-hour convenience store. It is sad to see where things have gone with this fun time of year.

Yes, employees who work on these holidays get extra pay, but if you go and ask them what they would prefer to do, a majority would say that spending time with family is more important. It just makes me question how the future will be for holiday shopping and overlooking the true meaning for fairness in having people work on a major holiday and families spending time together.

HHJ News