Americans more likely to shop at businesses that give employees Thanksgiving off

Jamie BallardData Journalist
November 12, 2018, 3:00 PM GMT+0

About two-thirds of Americans have Thanksgiving Day off

For many Americans, Thanksgiving is an enjoyable holiday best spent with family and friends. Nine out of ten (90%) US adults say that they enjoy Thanksgiving to some degree, while a similar number (87%) of those who celebrate the holiday agreed that it’s important to spend Thanksgiving with family.

It looks like many will have the opportunity to spend the holiday at home. According to new data from YouGov Omnibus, about two-thirds (67%) of working adults who celebrate Thanksgiving say that they don’t plan to work on the holiday. Fewer than one in five (17%) say that they’ll be working on Thanksgiving. Black Friday (November 23) is a different story. People are twice as likely to say they plan to work on Black Friday (35%) than on Thanksgiving (17%). However, a larger number (45%) of people say that they don’t plan to work on Black Friday.

Many American workplaces establish Thanksgiving as a holiday for their employees: 66% of working adults who celebrate Thanksgiving say that all employees have the day as a holiday. Another 22% say that some people have the day off, while others are expected to work. Only 6% of people say their workplace expects everyone to work on November 22.

Many employees also have the day after Thanksgiving off. More than one-third (36%) of working adults reported that their workplace gives all employees Black Friday off. Another 28% reported that some employees have the day off, while others are expected to work. An equal number (28%) say that everyone at their workplace is expected to work on Black Friday.

While some businesses need to be open on Thanksgiving, a majority (58%) of Americans say they’d be more likely to buy from a business that gives their employees Thanksgiving off. Interestingly, although Black Friday is regarded as a major shopping day, only 31% of people agreed with the statement, “I like shopping on Black Friday.” A significantly larger number of people (54%) somewhat or strongly disagreed with the statement. Baby boomers were especially likely (67%) to disagree with the statement.

See full results here.

Learn more about YouGov Omnibus.

Image: Getty

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