Shopworkers’ union opposes Belfast City Council Sunday trading plans

Extending Sunday trading hours in Belfast will negatively impact the city, a shopworkers union has warned.

The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) said an Alliance proposal to liberalise current protections would harm “workers, their families and our communities”.

Earlier this month, Belfast City Council backed calls by Alliance Councillor Sam Nelson for a ‘pilot trading scheme’ to allow shops with a floor space of more than 3,014 square feet to open on a Sunday morning.

Lord’s Day observance

USDAW General Secretary Paddy Lillis expressed disappointment at the decision, commenting that similar proposals had rightly been rejected in the past.

He said allowing large stores to open for longer hours on Sundays “would take a heavy toll on staff who would come under even more pressure to work”.

Under such changes, Lillis observed, retail workers would miss out on spending time with their families and being able to attend church.

Christian TUV Councillor Ron McDowell backed the union, saying that “even those who – unlike myself – don’t have concerns about Sabbath observance see the value in hard-working people having a Sunday morning off”.

Isle of Lewis

Meanwhile, church leaders on the Isle of Lewis are urging Tesco to abandon its plans to open on Sundays.

Ministers from the Free Church of Scotland, the Reformed Presbyterian Church and the Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) have called on the supermarket chain to respect the island’s long-standing Sabbath observance, as it consults staff about opening seven days a week.

Currently, Tesco’s Stornoway store is its only UK branch to remain closed on Sundays. Co-op, the island’s only other large supermarket, also shuts on a Sunday.

More than 1,500 people have signed a petition organised by the Free Church of Scotland urging Tesco to keep Sunday special.