Qld push to make Christmas Eve a public holiday to force restaurants to close

Plans for a new public holiday will make it “harder and harder” for restaurant owners on the Gold Coast to stay open.

The State Government is pushing to make Christmas Eve a public holiday from 6pm.

“Staff getting paid extra money is never a bad thing but the more we chop into restaurant profits the harder it is to stay open,” Hellenika owner Simon Gloftis told the Gold Coast Bulletin.

Gloftis said he was “100 per cent behind my staff making more money” – he would have to pay staff double-time-and-a-half rates on the night – but not if it meant the business ran at a loss.

“I am always happy to pay staff more and I pay my staff extremely well but it’s not a matter of us making less money - we will actually be losing money by opening on Christmas Eve,” he said.

Speaking the Gold Coast Bulletin, Gold Coast North Chamber of Commerce president Martin Brady said there needs to be a balance between trading times over the Christmas period and allowing people to spend time with their families.

“We would like all restaurants to be able to remain open and have appropriate staffing levels,” he said.

“If they are forced to close it will not be good for the overall Gold Coast economy.”

Christmas Eve is already a public holiday in South Australia and Northern Territory.

Sheridan Randall, 5^th August 2019