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OPINION

What does a store worker think about working today?

Carol Gleason
Carol Gleason

Harrison resident Carol Gleason works in retail.

Remember when Thanksgiving was a holiday? I think this is the conversation we will be having with our children, family and friends in the next few years if we aren’t having it already.

I work in retail. Every year around this time employees in retail are waiting for the dreaded announcement from upper management letting us all know the hours our store will be open on Thanksgiving Day. It seems it’s getting earlier and earlier every year.

My question to everyone is this: How and when did shopping become more important than Thanksgiving?

I understand that a lot of families are on a budget and often have a limited amount of money to spend on gifts. Black Friday sales are always advertised – and hyped – as the lowest prices ever. But there are 28 days to shop this year, and every store will run countless sales in between. Not to mention the deals you can get online.

Shoppers enter the Target store in Westwood at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving 2012.

If you do decide to shop on Thanksgiving Day, I’d ask that you keep these things in mind:

• Employees are often required to work that day. Since a good number of people need to keep their jobs, they feel they cannot say no or call off. I’m sure the majority of them would rather be at home enjoying a nice dinner. At the very least, it would have been a day off to rest before the start of the busy holiday season.

• Realize that people should come before things. Consumers have the power to stop stores from being open on Thanksgiving. Simply stated, if you don’t shop on that day, eventually the stores will figure out it is not cost-effective to be open.

• Remember why you are shopping in the first place. You are buying a gift for someone you obviously care about to celebrate a holiday that is about giving from your heart. Shopping should not be a sport.

Recently in the news there have been reports of stores that are refusing to be open on Thanksgiving Day, and I applaud them. In fact, I will more likely patronize those retailers versus the stores that are open on Thanksgiving. Those stores clearly care about their employees rather than making money for one day.

Can’t we all just take one day out of the year to sit back, relax and be truly thankful for what we have instead of constantly thinking of things we want? That is what Black Friday is for. Leave Thursday alone.