TUC: More than a million workers will be at work this Christmas Day

As many workplaces prepare to shut down for the Christmas break, the TUC is today (Wednesday) calling on everyone to spare a thought for the million-plus workers who will be working this Christmas Day.   

The TUC estimates – based on analysis of official statistics – that 1.2 million people will be working on Christmas Day this year. 

ONS data from previous years shows that care workers, nurses and nursing auxiliaries/assistants are usually the busiest occupations on Christmas Day. 

Members of the clergy are also among the most likely to be working for Christmas – in what is, no doubt, a very busy period for them.  

Low paid and insecure 

The TUC says that tens of thousands of people working on Christmas Day are in low-paid and insecure work. 

In social care alone, one in five workers is employed on zero-hours contracts.  

The TUC says zero-hours contracts give employers complete control over workers’ hours – and therefore pay – meaning workers don’t know how much they will work and earn each week.   

The union body argues that this makes it hard for workers to plan their lives, budget and look after their children. 

And it makes it harder for workers to challenge unacceptable behaviour by bosses because of concerns about whether they will be penalised by not being allocated hours in future.   

The TUC also warns that, not only do zero-hours contracts give workers fewer rights, but they also come with a significant pay penalty. The average zero-hours contract worker typically earns around 30 per cent less (£11.70 an hour) than the median hourly rate (£16.67). 

“Perfect Christmas present” 

The TUC says the government delivering the Employment Rights Act is the “perfect Christmas present” for many working over Christmas. 

The Act, which just received Royal Assent, will: 

Health and care workers, who are over-represented among Christmas workers, will stand to gain significantly from the Act – as it will introduce new mechanisms to negotiate better terms, conditions and pay across the sector through a Fair Pay Agreement. 

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: 

“For many of us, Christmas Day is a special time to spend with our nearest and dearest. 

“So, we should all spare a thought for the people who will be hard at work, while we’re opening our presents, tucking into the turkey and relaxing with our families. 

“Let’s stop and pay thanks to all those who keep the services we rely upon running during the Christmas break.” 

On the benefits of the Employment Rights Act for Christmas workers, Paul added:  

“Many working on Christmas Day will be on zero-hours contracts – especially in sectors like social care and hospitality. 

“But when the Employment Rights Act comes into force, exploitative zero-hours contracts should be consigned to history. 

“Banning exploitative zero-hours contracts, sick pay for all, expanding parental and bereavement leave – these are just some of the watershed measures the legislation will now deliver.  

“And it will introduce a fair pay agreement in social care – which will improve pay and conditions for those at work to look after the most vulnerable in society on Christmas Day. 

“This is the perfect Christmas present for millions of workers up and down the country, including those working today, who will now enjoy more security, better pay and dignity at work.” 

ENDS 

Notes to editors: 

- People working Christmas Day (source: ONS Labour Force Survey) 

-The most relevant ONS data from recent years is from Christmas 2018 as this the most recent published data outside of pandemic years where Christmas falls on a weekday, as it will this year. We have used this as our reference data. 

- ONS has published figures for Christmas Day working from 2022 but in this year Christmas Day fell on a Sunday and the Christmas and Boxing Day bank holidays fell on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 December. ONS figures refer to how many people worked on the bank holiday rather than on Christmas Day itself. In 2022 this produced higher numbers for people working than in years where the bank holiday and Christmas day are the same, so using this data would have led to us overstating our estimate. 

-The ONS has not published data on Christmas day working for 2023 or 2024, although we expect 2024 data to become available in 2026.