Our TDs are already on their Christmas holiday - and won't be back at work for almost four weeks. But what about the rest of us? Has the downturn - and the way Christmas falls at a weekend this year - affected our seasonal break, asks BRIAN O'CONNELL
IRELAND’S TDs began their Christmas holidays yesterday, and are looking at a four-week break from the Dáil, returning to work on January 12th. The length of the TDs’ break draws much criticism, and as such a lengthy lay-off from work during the Christmas period would be highly unusual for most workers, especially in this economic climate.
So what is the general approach to taking time off at Christmas, and could the downturn actually mean more holidays for employees? This year, Christmas Day, St Stephen’s Day and New Year’s Day all fall on weekends, meaning that people in regular employment may be in line for additional days off between Christmas and New Year.
Specific data on how much annual leave is taken nationally at Christmas is difficult to pin down, with neither the Central Statistics Office (CSO) nor the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) gathering relevant statistics.
In manufacturing, some companies may decide that the costs of re-opening between Christmas Day and New Year are too high, so workers could be looking at a full week off. For other sectors though, economics will be the driver of days off, with unions noticing some employees are reluctant to take time off this year, if it will affect their take-home pay.
Mark Fielding, chief executive of the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (Isme), says many employers, particularly in office environments, are instructing employees to hold annual leave until the Christmas period. He says the timing of Christmas could mean that TDs aren’t the only workers to benefit from an extended break this year.
“I’m seeing a trend that some places are taking an extra three days’ leave, and are closing from Christmas Eve until Tuesday, January 4th. These are mainly office jobs. Retail and manufacturing on the whole would be back in work on December 29th or 30th. Employers are planning ahead, and some I know are asking employees to hold three days out of their annual leave for this period.”
Despite the tough economic situation, it may actually suit employers to give staff additional time off this Christmas. With budgets tightened, employers are looking at every way to streamline costs, and giving staff additional time off may benefit business.
“It gets the holidays out of the way. If you have a small business with 10 people employed, you are bound to have five or six of them who will want to take holidays. This means that staffing is way down, and your productivity goes out the window. It’s actually better if everyone takes those days at the same time and then you get them out of the way,” says Fielding.
But what of workers themselves? Musician Shane Dempsey (23) says he can only dream of an extended break this year, and will be working a lot more than usual in the lead-up to Christmas because of the decline in corporate business in January and February. “I’m a student and play in a covers band at weekends, and normally Christmas and the New Year are busy. I have Christmas Day and Stephen’s Day off this year, and that’s it. I have to work, because after Christmas things are looking very quiet.
“I know if I have a day off and another band rings me to fill in, I’ll go and fill in with them. In the public sector, if you have your holidays and are back to work on the following Monday or Tuesday, there’s a certainty to that. Basically I’m working more this Christmas for less money.”
And some people don’t want additional holidays. Michael MacSweeney works with Provision, a photography agency in Cork. He says he would much prefer to work during Christmas and take holidays at other times of the year. “I worked the last three Christmases, to the extent that I’d be getting calls on Christmas Day for work. We have to maintain a service in our workplace in case something happens. I think Christmas drags out an awful lot. I much prefer to take that time off in the summer when you have the weather and you can actually do something positive.
“People might say they like extra days off at Christmas, but they get stir crazy after a while. If the weather gets more severe, then why not take the two weeks in summer time?”
MacSweeney says in his parents’ time it would have been unusual to take more than a week off at Christmas, and he believes four days is enough. Some schools and colleges should be working more, not less, this Christmas, he says. “Some schools had to close in recent weeks and there’s plenty of time at Christmas to make those days up. But people somehow feel they should have all this time off at Christmas.”
Employer Ken Murray, who runs his own Super Valu store, doesn’t agree that the downturn will have much of a bearing on Christmas holidays or that we’ll see a greater appetite from staff to work over the festive period. Murray is organising his work roster for the coming weeks and doesn’t believe personal finances will affect time off.
“If the country was totally on its knees and people were struggling hugely, they would always still want time off around Christmas,” he says.
While staff may be making more modest plans for their Christmas break this year, Murray says it would be a mistake to think the downturn has created a greater appetite to work during the holiday season. “There was a period of time when people were taking foreign holidays around Christmas and you had to allow for that. Employees were hard to get hold of if you needed them as they were going to the Canaries and could be gone until the New Year. I don’t hear of anybody doing it this year, but that doesn’t mean they want to work more over Christmas.”
Frank Connolly, head of communications with Siptu, says workers’ attitudes towards Christmas holidays often depend on their contractual situations. He argues that renegotiated work arrangements may affect Christmas rosters this year, and staff who might previously have worked full-time and are now on reduced or part-time contracts, may find their holiday arrangements altered significantly.
“I think if people are entitled to get paid, they will be looking forward to their holidays. No one wants to take a break if they will lose money, particularly with the way things are. The employers may be saying ‘we will give you a week off but we can only pay for two or three days’. In the past, employees maybe could have afforded to take unpaid leave like that, but that is not the case now.”
