Free Christmas Eve. Petru is “dismayed to discover” that new ideas are emerging

Polish 2050 MP Ryszard Petru consistently remains an opponent of increasing the number of public holidays. When the Ministry of Labor, Family and Social Policy proposed introducing a statutory day off on December 24, he began to argue that the economy would suffer because each day at work translates into a smaller loss in GDP.

Petru about having a free Christmas Eve

On Wednesday in the Sejm, he argued that the economy was the most important thing.

“It’s easy to give gifts, but who will pay for them,” he said. He called the project “a parliamentary bill, without an analysis of the costs for the economy.” Petru is ready to resign if, instead of Christmas Eve, another day becomes a day off. In his opinion, the best “candidate” is Epiphany, which falls on January 6.

In a morning interview with RMF, Petru said that he had consulted the project with 30 organizations, entrepreneurs, but also trade unions that represent the interests of employees. – It’s easy to throw away such gifts, and then the question arises: maybe there are people who will lose a lot from it? – he said.

Robert Mazurek reminded that this is not entirely true, because on Christmas Eve in most places people work differently than on other days of the year – shorter, less intensive, often even pretending to be work. He quoted the words of prof. Marcin Piątkowski, who said that as a result it would not be a huge loss for the economy.

Ryszard Petru on new ideas for a day off

– In production, because Poland is a country where there is more production than services, you work less hours, but you work. It is not as each of us thinks that Christmas Eve is the way we have it, said Petru. – There are industries that make the most money on this day. It’s just about analyzing, seeing how many holidays we have during the year and making a deeper, reasonable analysis and seeing who loses.

Discussions about a free Christmas Eve are not MP Petru’s biggest nightmare. He admitted that he had already encountered proposals to establish further days off.

– I am horrified to say that new ideas are emerging, e.g. a free Good Friday – said the politician.

Minister Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bąk has calculations regarding the costs

Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański presented calculations showing that the idea of ​​a work-free Christmas Eve would cost the Polish economy PLN 4 billion. – With all due respect to the calculations of the Minister of Finance, we cannot treat Christmas Eve in the same way as any ordinary Tuesday, which we would make a day off from work, because on December 24, many workplaces either shorten the working day or work is performed on half-whistle, or (many employers – ed.) give their employees time off altogether – said Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bąk in the “Guest of Events” program on Polsat News.

The Minister of Family, Labor and Social Policy emphasized that the law must keep up with reality, and there must be solutions that will allow Polish society to enjoy the holidays, if they celebrate them, and prepare appropriately for them. Dziemianowicz-Bąk added that “she is convinced that a free Christmas Eve will become a fact.” In a recent survey commissioned by “Wprost” conducted by SW Research, as many as 74 percent respondents supported the introduction of such a solution.