Christmas shoppers asked to start browsing now – with online retail facing huge demand in December
Christmas shoppers are being encouraged to begin browsing for presents as early as September this year - with retailers warning that demand could be higher this year than ever before.
Christmas shoppers are being encouraged to begin browsing for presents early this year – with retailers warning that December demand could be higher than ever before.
This summer saw the closure of hundreds of brick-and-mortar stores in the UK as the country entered lockdown; with shoppers turning to websites and e-commerce to place orders.
With tighter restrictions being introduced ahead of the winter and a renewed emphasis on staying indoors, retailers are anticipating an unprecedented flood of web traffic during December – with delivery services being stretched to full capacity to meet demand.
Online retail is now preparing for a festive season – with customers advised to start looking for gifts soon and spread their shopping out across the winter to avoid missing out or suffering delays.
The BBC reports that the industry body for online retailers, IMRG, is expecting “really very excessive” volumes this year.
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Christmas shoppers are being told that panic-buying is unnecessary, but purchasing bit-by-bit could prove enormously beneficial rather than attempting to grab gifts in one go.
“Whilst that in itself is not a problem, getting too much of it too close to Christmas is going to be a bit of a problem,” said IMRG representative Andy Mulcahy.
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“If you can spread out your shopping and do quite a lot of it in November, maybe even a bit of it now, then that would really help.”
Many major firms will also be launching recruitment drives ahead of Christmas to cater for higher demand – which may help to give the economy a much-needed boost during what is being labelled a “challenging” winter period.
Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury’s have confirmed that they’re already seeing a spike in Christmas food searches on their websites.
Higher demand may also come in for Christmas Cards in 2020 – with fewer people expected to make journeys outside their homes and send festive wishes via post instead (Health Secretary Matt Hancock is refusing to rule out students having to stay in halls over Christmas, for example).
Some retail experts say there may also be more emphasis on decorations rather than food this year; as Brits dine around tighter tables in smaller numbers.
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Hundreds of staff to strike at four Greater Manchester hospitals next week
Emily Sergeant
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week.
More than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – are walking out for three days next week after union UNISON says an offer to ‘resolve’ a dispute was withdrawn before discussions could take place.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 24, Wednesday 26, and Friday 28 August.
In particular, staff from all four sites will also gather in Salford on Wednesday (26 August) for a ‘unified’ day of protest.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
“Those at the top of NCA have shown a lack of leadership and made their disregard for their staff clear,” explained UNISON North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan.
“A deal was put on the table but taken away before we had chance to talk it over. We are ready to continue negotiations, but it’s obvious NCA has no intention of resolving this.
“This isn’t complicated. Staff are simply asking for what their contract says they’re entitled to. Nothing more.”
Featured Image – Pxhere
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Wetherspoons introduces new phone rule at all UK pubs after customers are ‘driven nuts’
Emily Sergeant
JD Wetherspoon has announced a major new phone rule in all its sites across the UK after customers complain of being ‘driven nuts’.
The pub chain – which has nearly 800 branches across the UK – announced earlier this week that it has made the decision to ban people from playing music or videos out of their phones, and from taking calls on loudspeaker.
The ban, which has been introduced effective immediately, follows a rising number of complaints from customers about the noise – with owners saying sounds from smartphones and tablet computers had become an ‘increasing problem’ in recent years.
Wetherspoon founder and chairman, Tim Martin, says he wants Wetherspoon pubs to be ‘an oasis of tranquillity and contemplation’.
Wetherspoons has introduced a new phone rule at all its UK pubs after customers are ‘driven nuts’ / Credit: Allan Rohmer (via Unsplash)
A formal statement from the company announcing the ban reads: “Following complaints from customers, who are being driven nuts by other people’s videos and amplified phone conversations, Wetherspoon has asked customers to switch their phones to silent or to use earphones.”
Tim Martin added: “In order to avoid customers being driven chicken jalfrezi by a cacophony of sound, we are kindly asking phone users to pipe down.”
Wetherspoon’s ban follows a YouGov poll conducted last year questioning public opinion on a proposition made by the Liberal Democrats of introducing fines of up to £1,000 for ‘headphone dodgers’ who play music out loud on buses and trains.
62% of people, on average, said they would back this move if it was introduced.
The poll, which surveyed 6,815 British adults, found that almost three-quarters of those over 65 would support the fines, while those aged between 18 and 24 were split 47% to 43% in favour of it.
Early public reactions to Wetherspoon’s ban appears to be overwhelmingly positive.
The Manc -
25th September 2020 
