Mall threatens to fine stores $200 an hour for being closed on Thanksgiving

Mall threatens to fine stores $200 an hour for being closed on Thanksgiving
(Image credit: Joshua Lott/Getty Images)

So much for being home for the holidays.

A shopping mall in upstate New York has apparently threatened to fine retailers the insane sum of $200 an hour if they aren't open at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving.

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Workers aren't happy about the mall's extended hours, either. "It's a family day, it's a holiday, and frankly, it's really getting out of hand with how stores are opening so early," Brian McKnight, manager of the Art of Shaving boutique at Walden Galleria, told The Huffington Post. He said that his store will pay the fine and remain closed on Thanksgiving Day. "It's about having that comfortable work-life balance and respecting my employees' holiday time with their families."

The holiday is apparently no longer a time when Americans can sit down for a nice dinner with their families. This year, retailers around the country, including Macy's, Target, and Walmart, have pledged to open their doors on Thanksgiving Day in addition to Black Friday. Like Columbus Day and Memorial Day before it, Thanksgiving is becoming another day devoted to American consumerism — and a holiday where the increasing numbers of workers no longer have the day off.

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Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.