Kmart has announced that it plans to keep its stores open for 42 hours straight from Thanksgiving though Black Friday this year. It appears Kmart will be the store that is open the earliest on Thanksgiving. Kmart employees, like my Mom, will be forced to miss important time with their families on Thanksgiving. I’m asking Kmart to commit to allowing employees to request Thanksgiving day off and to rely only on volunteer employees.

We understand that it is retail, and employees understand that they have to work hours on holidays. However, Kmart’s unnecessary hours are forcing its employees to miss out on important time with their families. With lives that are continuously busier and busier, it is more important now than ever to put an end to this before we no longer have holidays. There are other stores who have decided to close on Thanksgiving to give their employees time with their families. Why not be in the news in a positive light? The sales can wait a few more hours.

Kmart covers its shameless act of greed by stating that it is giving its employees more time to make money. Kmart: have you even talked to your employees about your holiday hours and what they will be required to work? The answer is no. We are almost 2 weeks away from Kmart stores being open 42 hours straight, and employees - even after asking management about what hours they will be required to work - still have not received information about their schedules during this time.

Kmart - You should not open your stores at 6am on Thanksgiving Day nor should your stores remain open for the subsequent 42 hours. Furthermore, you should be honest and advise your employees on their schedules so they can plan when to spend time with their families when you put this burden on them. Kmart has said that it will staff its stores using volunteers and seasonal employees. I’m calling on Kmart to commit to respecting the schedules of employees who request not to work on Thanksgiving Day.

Kmart should close their stores early, or, at the very least, allow flexibility with scheduling to give their employees time to spend with their families.