I’m not really sure how to respond to this article about GameStop employees having Thanksgiving off. GameStop is just follow the lead of retailers like Target and Wal-Mart but they are in a very different position than those other retailers. I think it is a smart thing to do but it’s a complicated decision for all involved.
GameStop has been at the precipice of bankruptcy for a few years now. It seems like a month doesn’t go by without some news snippet about them shutting down stores or laying off workers. For GameStop, the business, it is not good news that they will have to delay their door-buster sales for a day.
When I think about the workers, it’s a different story. With the threat of Covid 19, many workers are worried about their safety and the safety of their family members. So, taking one of the busiest days of the year off is a responsible thing to do for the health of employees and customers alike.
I’m sure there are a lot of GameStop employees who love the idea of spending time with their family on Thanksgiving or even just having a day off to play games. But, unlike salaried employees, GameStop employees at stores don’t get paid holidays. For these people, who are living paycheck to paycheck, they are losing a day of work. Worse yet they are losing a day where they would have been paid time-and-a-half. That is a significant loss to their paychecks.
It is a complicated issue and there are a lot of reason why closing the stores outweigh the reasons for keeping them open. At least we know there will be more people online to play games with on Thanksgiving, unless some asshats plan a DDoS attack on that day.