Dive Brief:
- While more than seven out of 10 surveyed employers have scheduled paid days off for both Thanksgiving Day and the following Friday, 36% of employers polled in a recent survey will require at least some employees to work on the national holiday, according to Bloomberg BNA.
- Bloomberg BNA has been tracking Thanksgiving employer practices since 1980, and for the 2015 it polled 350 senior HR and employee relations executives representing a broad cross-section of U.S. employers.
- Among the findings, workers with smaller employers are most likely to be thankful for a four-day holiday weekend. Just under 80% of employers with fewer than 1,000 workers have scheduled paid holidays for both Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday this year, while 58% of larger employers will be as generous.
Dive Insight:
While 96% of employers will designate Thanksgiving a paid day off, a number of organizations will require at least some of their employees to work on the holiday, said Robert Combs, Bloomberg BNA's Manager of Custom Research.
"The good news for workers who are required to spend the holiday away from friends and family is that most will be compensated in the form of extra pay, additional time off or both," Combs says, adding that 82% of employers requiring Thanksgiving duty will provide workers extra pay and/or leave this year.
Not surprisingly, employees responsible for public safety, security or maintenance are most likely to be at work on Thanksgiving Day, at about 14%. Service and maintenance staff (13%) and technicians (13%) are also likely to draw holiday shifts. Of course, retail workers will be logging time over the weekend as well.
