Christy Clark promises B.C. Family Day
But business community concerned about rising costs of labour
Talk about your political promises — Christy Clark has come up with a real crowd-pleaser.
The ex-deputy premier turned talk-show host says she'll declare the third Monday in February "Family Day" if she becomes B.C.'s next premier, giving everyone in B.C. another paid holiday.
Locked in a close battle to be named the new B.C. Liberal leader, Clark announced her latest political pledge Monday, promising to brighten a month usually clouded with rain and snow.
"One of the keys to strong families is having quality time together," said Clark.
"In British Columbia, families will go 111 days this year — from New Year's to Easter — without a chance to unwind and spend time together."
The concept of a holiday during February has been floated before — and Family Day is already celebrated the third Monday in February in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan -- but Clark is the first to suggest it as part of her party's platform.
"A February holiday may spark an increase in tourism and other family related entertainment and allow for greater productivity as employees come back to work refreshed," she said.
But B.C. businesses rained on Clark's parade Monday, saying the move for another paid holiday would be bad for the bottom line.
"It's something employers will be concerned about — it will increase the cost of labour," said Jock Finlayson of the Business Council of B.C. "A lot of citizens will be happy, but the cost falls on employers."
Finlayson credited Clark for the proposal.
"When the government doesn't have any money to pay for anything new, it's challenging for candidates to come up with something," he said.
Mark Startup of Shelfspace, which represents retail entrepreneurs, said the smaller the company, the more the pain.
"The smaller the employer, the less likely they will be to support another holiday," said Startup, whose association represents B.C. and Alberta retailers.
"It's kind of like the minimum wage — it sounds like a good idea if you're a citizen, but when you look at it more closely, it costs money."
Helmut Pastrick, chief economist with Central One Credit Union, believes it could work.
"There are more than 200 working days in a year, and we're talking one day, so it would be less than half a per cent," said Pastrick. "I don't think there's any economic significance to it." [email protected] |
發表於 2011-1-11 07:11
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