Comments on: Honey I’m Home – 1950s Switzerland http://julesritter.com/2007/12/168/ Tue, 20 Jul 2010 14:49:04 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Sally Philpot http://julesritter.com/2007/12/168/comment-page-1/#comment-116 Sally Philpot Tue, 15 Jan 2008 13:22:26 +0000 http://julesritter.com/?p=168#comment-116 Having been a working single mum (not in retail), I agreed at the time to Sunday opening as it extended my time for family shopping. After working a full day, collecting my son from school or after school care, did I really want to race around the supermarket whilst my son dragged his feet behind me? Yes, I could have bought ready meals and lived on bog offs but I did not want to become as your fellow writer Yuri states 'a working class Brit'. Now I am on the other side of the coin and luckily this allows me more time to spend with the family. My partner and I both work full time, my son is now 14, but with the 3 of us sharing the chores, which can be fun/stressfull we make spare time for Sundays. So to sum up my waffle, I think Sunday shopping with restricted hours of opening can be an asset to all classes, of any country. Mr and Mrs Hans can continue their ideal life without shopping on a Sunday whilst Ms Smith can shop for herself and her children at a less stressful pace. Now eveyone should be happy until we remember Mrs Hans but as Julie says 'thats another whole blog'. S. Having been a working single mum (not in retail), I agreed at the time to Sunday opening as it extended my time for family shopping. After working a full day, collecting my son from school or after school care, did I really want to race around the supermarket whilst my son dragged his feet behind me? Yes, I could have bought ready meals and lived on bog offs but I did not want to become as your fellow writer Yuri states ‘a working class Brit’.
Now I am on the other side of the coin and luckily this allows me more time to spend with the family. My partner and I both work full time, my son is now 14, but with the 3 of us sharing the chores, which can be fun/stressfull we make spare time for Sundays.
So to sum up my waffle, I think Sunday shopping with restricted hours of opening can be an asset to all classes, of any country. Mr and Mrs Hans can continue their ideal life without shopping on a Sunday whilst Ms Smith can shop for herself and her children at a less stressful pace. Now eveyone should be happy until we remember Mrs Hans but as Julie says ‘thats another whole blog’. S.

]]> By: marco http://julesritter.com/2007/12/168/comment-page-1/#comment-115 marco Tue, 11 Dec 2007 12:14:11 +0000 http://julesritter.com/?p=168#comment-115 what I see is that most of shops are nearly empty for most of the time, while all the few shops who are open on sunday or in the late evening are incredibly overcrowded! I think if there were some more of them this will not change much in our lives...just a bit less rush for us and for the supermarket employees...and a bigger variety of food for all of us who are now forced to eat just the food from the 24/7 Coop, Migros and Aperto! what I see is that most of shops are nearly empty for most of the time, while all the few shops who are open on sunday or in the late evening are incredibly overcrowded! I think if there were some more of them this will not change much in our lives…just a bit less rush for us and for the supermarket employees…and a bigger variety of food for all of us who are now forced to eat just the food from the 24/7 Coop, Migros and Aperto!

]]> By: Jules http://julesritter.com/2007/12/168/comment-page-1/#comment-114 Jules Sat, 08 Dec 2007 16:44:07 +0000 http://julesritter.com/?p=168#comment-114 Hello Yuri and welcome to the site. Very valid arguments. Two things: Not all single mothers work in retail but these are the ones you see chasing around the supermarkets before they close and having to brave the crowds on Saturday. As I said this would definitely change the Sunday culture but in the UK many students are grateful to work weekends and here I believe they will earn an extra 50% on Sundays. I don't think that seven day trading results in the disentegration of the family many other factors contribute to that mainly the disappearance of the middle class- which is a whole other blog ... Thanks for leaving a comment. Hello Yuri and welcome to the site. Very valid arguments. Two things: Not all single mothers work in retail but these are the ones you see chasing around the supermarkets before they close and having to brave the crowds on Saturday. As I said this would definitely change the Sunday culture but in the UK many students are grateful to work weekends and here I believe they will earn an extra 50% on Sundays. I don’t think that seven day trading results in the disentegration of the family many other factors contribute to that mainly the disappearance of the middle class- which is a whole other blog … Thanks for leaving a comment.

]]> By: Yuri http://julesritter.com/2007/12/168/comment-page-1/#comment-113 Yuri Sat, 08 Dec 2007 14:12:29 +0000 http://julesritter.com/?p=168#comment-113 Hello Jules, Are you sure a widower or single mother would benefit of sunday shopping? In the case of Geneva, small shops have been allowed to open for a long time, petrol stations shops likewise, you have the shopping centers of the airport and the main train station, in short if you really need a pint of milk, a chocolate bar or a bag of pasta, you won't have to go far to find some. Most bars and restaurants are also open. Sunday trading is opposed by unions and left-wing parties because it will mean more vulnerable workers(those very single mum you are concerned about for example) having to work on those days, no one really believe the retail chains when they say no one will be forced to work on sunday and that would have a real impact on family life, particularly when you look at the makeup of those working for Migros, Coop and the likes, mainly people from countries with a strong family tradition like Portugal or Kosovo. That's also why late-openings are resisted, so that mothers and father can go home for a meal together or to look after their kids. Just look at the disintegration of family life amongst working-class Brittons, making up the vast majority of week-end workers and the consequences for the kids to see where that can lead. Why not keep sunday as a day off for a majority of people so that families can be together, friends can meet without having to check their agenda to see if they are working and just for one day, we are not submitted to the relentless assault of mindless consumerism? I doubt the ladies at the Migros checkout are that keen to see this introduced. Y Hello Jules,

Are you sure a widower or single mother would benefit of sunday shopping? In the case of Geneva, small shops have been allowed to open for a long time, petrol stations shops likewise, you have the shopping centers of the airport and the main train station, in short if you really need a pint of milk, a chocolate bar or a bag of pasta, you won’t have to go far to find some. Most bars and restaurants are also open. Sunday trading is opposed by unions and left-wing parties because it will mean more vulnerable workers(those very single mum you are concerned about for example) having to work on those days, no one really believe the retail chains when they say no one will be forced to work on sunday and that would have a real impact on family life, particularly when you look at the makeup of those working for Migros, Coop and the likes, mainly people from countries with a strong family tradition like Portugal or Kosovo. That’s also why late-openings are resisted, so that mothers and father can go home for a meal together or to look after their kids. Just look at the disintegration of family life amongst working-class Brittons, making up the vast majority of week-end workers and the consequences for the kids to see where that can lead.

Why not keep sunday as a day off for a majority of people so that families can be together, friends can meet without having to check their agenda to see if they are working and just for one day, we are not submitted to the relentless assault of mindless consumerism? I doubt the ladies at the Migros checkout are that keen to see this introduced.

Y

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