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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Three more hours
Labour Minister Jennifer Howard says she is pleased unions and employers have reached a consensus on Sunday shopping, but it is more accurate to describe the recommendations of the Labour Management Review Committee as a compromise.
Both sides stuck to their guns -- unions opposed any expansion of working hours on Sunday for retail employees, while business groups want the issue left to the discretion of store owners, but they agreed to move the issue forward.
Of the two positions, labour comes out ahead, with just three extra hours of Sunday shopping to be made available under new legislation. Stores will be able to open at 9 a.m., instead of noon, but they must still close at 6, apparently so workers can have supper with their families.
A survey by the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce showed nearly two-thirds of Manitobans -- probably more in Winnipeg -- want employers to be given the right to set their own hours based on customer demand.
It works that way in many provinces now, and the family unit hasn't collapsed. Nor has atheism replaced faith in places where Sunday is a regular working day. Most employers don't even see much demand for service after 6 p.m. on Sundays, but some companies -- garden centres, for example -- say it would help their bottom lines.
The expansion of Sunday shopping hours is a positive step, but the province has missed an opportunity to abandon dogma in favour of old-fashioned common sense.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 25, 2012 A12
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