Popular pub retailer, Greene King, is offering adults who have to work on Christmas Day the chance to celebrate early with a free meal. Thousands of workers including nurses, carers, chefs, servers, delivery drivers and more will be able to enjoy ‘The Big Christmas Shift’ on December 1 at one of more than 700 Greene King pubs across the country.
Workers will be given a complimentary dinner, with an estimated 30,000 meals expected to be served as part of the occasion. To raise awareness of the initiative, the pub chain has launched a new advert featuring “original shift worker” Santa, dressed in the green which he originally wore before red became the norm.
A spokesperson for Greene King said: “We see first-hand the hard work that goes into making Christmas happen. While most of us are sitting down for Christmas lunch, millions of people are working hard to keep things running.
“The Big Christmas Shift is our way of saying thank you, giving thousands of those working on December 25th their own chance to celebrate, relax and enjoy a proper roast before the festive rush kicks in.”
The offering follows research of 1,000 adults who’ve previously worked on Christmas Day which revealed what they missed most when doing so.
Top of the list was not being with family, but other notable moments include board game arguments, relatives falling asleep post-meal, and corny cracker jokes.
Those polled also missed the smell of the festive dinner wafting through the house, wearing matching pyjamas, and the kids waking up much too early.
Others would miss watching Christmas movies on the day, carving the turkey, and the annual family photo.
To avoid missing out entirely, 40% have had video calls with their family while at work so they can experience some of the festivities, even if from afar. While one in 10 will celebrate Christmas on another day with Boxing Day the most popular alternative date.
The majority (90%) try to make their day at work as Christmassy as possible by playing festive songs (46%), indulging in mince pies and chocolate (41%), and putting up decorations (40%).
Head to https://www.greeneking.co.uk/blue-light-discount to find a participating pub and sign up.