Andrzej Domański about the costs of a day off on Christmas Eve

On Wednesday, Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański was asked on Radio ZET whether the Left's idea to make Christmas Eve a day off from work was too expensive for the budget. “In my opinion, yes,” Domański said.

– We calculated at the Ministry of Finance that the cost for the economy would be approximately PLN 4 billion and for the budget at PLN 2.3 billion – he said. – I will present arguments that this is a bad solution – emphasized Domański. He added that in his opinion this idea is an “unnecessary step,” he added.

When asked whether Poles would not be disappointed by the lack of Christmas Eve, he pointed out that “millions of Poles may also be disappointed if they are unable to make purchases on this day. (…) Christmas Eve has never been a day off,” he noted. – I haven't talked to the Prime Minister about this yet. It is my duty to present calculations of how much such a change may cost – concluded the Minister of Finance.

At the beginning of November, the first reading of the bill prepared by Left MPs took place in the Sejm. They want Christmas Eve to be a day off from work this year. Therefore, on behalf of the authors of the bill, Katarzyna Ueberhan (Left) submitted a motion to immediately proceed to the second reading of the bill, without referring it to the committee.

However, the Sejm decided that the parliamentary bill on establishing Christmas Eve as a day off from work will be referred for further work to two parliamentary committees – the Committee for Social Policy and Family and the Committee for Economy and Development.

The project proposes establishing December 24 as a day off from work. It is intended to apply to all employees, including employees of commercial establishments, for whom currently – in accordance with the Act on Restriction of Trade on Sundays and Holidays – Christmas Eve is a working day until 2 p.m.