The Employment Structure of the Sunday Labour Market in Retailing: A Comparative Analysis of DIY and Grocery Superstores in Scotland and in England and Wales

Abstract

Sunday trading in Scotland is an established feature integral to the retail operations of many companies. This requires that a considerable number of people take up paid employment on Sunday. Illegal Sunday trading in England and Wales, particularly since Christmas 1991, has made similar demands on retail staff. In this paper Sunday employment in superstores in Scotland with its more established and legal Sunday working, is compared with England and Wales, with their more recent and illegal opening pattern. It is concluded that a number of differences do exist, particularly in grocery superstores. Key findings include the high number of Sunday-only workers and a lower proportion of workers on premium rates in Scotland. When Sunday trading is legalised and established in England and Wales it would be expected that the employment pattern would come to mirror more closely the Scottish situation. These findings are discussed in the context of employment change and spatial-legal debates.

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