Only 28 days since the implementation of the new Trade Law, including its provisions on the prohibition of store operations on Sundays, is too little time to draw conclusions about the application of the law, stated Deputy Prime Minister Damir Polančec today in the Croatian Parliament.
Specifically, Dragica Zgrebec (SDP) asked him whether the Government still intends to insist on the prohibition of Sunday work, since the law, she said, does not protect workers in stores, but rather they lose their jobs due to the Sunday work ban. She warned that, due to the prohibition of store operations, gas stations are increasingly thriving on Sundays and expanding their assortment, which is much more expensive than that in stores, and that some retail chains deliver products on Sundays through online sales. Polančec dismissed her claims that the Law does not protect employees in stores, inviting her to visit stores and ask employees, mostly female employees, if they are satisfied that they do not have to work on Sundays.
He emphasized that 28 days, which have passed since the start of the Law’s implementation, is too little for its monitoring and any conclusions about its application. He stated that it is difficult to draw conclusions also because there were more holidays in January and due to the fact that, due to the gas crisis, temperatures in shopping centers were low, which negatively affected sales. He announced increased inspector oversight of the law’s implementation, especially regarding the prohibition of store operations on Sundays.
