Paul, obviously you are not aware that tenants get charged extra in most cases for trading outside core hours, and sundays, ph and after 5pm are usually not core hours.

Besides, rents are now in most cases less than wages, especially when you take in the add ons.

AC, the consumer wants the shops cafes etc open seven days, but don't want to pay the price. Go figure.

Anyway, off fishing for a week so wont be on often.Lucky I pay my staff well because otherwise I couldn't trust them to stay hey!

Armchair Critic once upon a time, retailing was 5 days, 9 to 5, plus Saturday morning. Most industry was just 5 days, & people had weekends off for fun. Then penalty rates were justifiable, but in this now 24/7 world they are definitely not.

Someone demanded 24/7 shopping. It was probably actually government, looking for some way to employ the useless masses, as industry became unaffordable in Oz.

This did not come with any increase in real disposable income, so the same spend was spread over longer hours requiring more employees to service it. Obviously costs climbed considerably, & the small increase in business gained by eliminating the small corner store did not help much with this.

Thus your worker is not sticking it up the boss, but the consumer who has to pay more to cover these extra costs. The only one in front is government, with unemployment figures looking better.

Of course Paul shows his total lack of understanding anything with his post. He must be a bureaucrat or academic to be so wrong. The small retailers hate the longer hours. They are not open for profit as he believes, but survival. Many simply have to personally work longer hours, as employees are not affordable, even the cash in hand mob are too costly.

Weekend trading is rarely profitable for them, however if they are not open they lose their weekday business as well.

I could not believe people were stupid enough to be in favour of first Thursday night, then full Saturday trading, & finally 24/7, but they were. Now they will have to accept the loss of penalty rates if not this year, but soon, as part of the cost of their convenient shopping lifestyle.

Do enjoy the fishing rehctub.

Where are you going? Back to the old stamping grounds in the Whitsundays, or somewhere more local.

I used to get very sick of reef fishing trips, when I could get stuck out there for a week or even two, flying new tourists & supplies out to us with Air Whitsundays Lake Buccaneers. I'd be wishing the fuel to get low, so I had to come back in.

Today I'd love a couple of those trips, although that could be just looking back through the rose coloured glasses of time.

Hi Has been. as luck would have it I get service now and again, im at Weipa.

As for your post, you have pretty much summed it up perfectly, especially the part where there is no extra money, and if there is, something else is suffering.

If only these unionised people could see past their own bias. I just hope they don't learn the hard way, because then everyone except the big boys miss out and they are doing their level best to reduce staff at every angle.