New Zealand Catholic bishops oppose liberalising Easter trading laws

The New Zealand Catholic bishops, in a recent statement, repeated their concern at the push for liberalising laws on Easter trading. They have directly appealed to Members of Parliament to pay heed to the social rather than the commercial aspects of the Easter trading-hours legislation in the interests of workers and their families.

They say New Zealanders already work some of the longest hours of any OECD country. If profits are to be placed before people, they warn, the outcome will be a society less human, more stressful for individuals, for families and for society at large.

Good Friday and Easter Sunday are the Christianity’s most significant feasts, commemorating its very foundation. The bishops fear that commercial pressures to have these days treated as normal working time will worsen the already severe pressures on family time. This affects not just time for worship, they caution, but also on quality time for families to spend together in sporting, cultural and leisure activities.

The bishops see the young as especially vulnerable, being thus deprived of recreational time with their parents. “We don’t need to spell out the dire consequences that often result when young people look elsewhere for their support,” say the bishops.

ENDS

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