If adopted by the council at its next meeting on December 11, it will allow any type of shop to trade next Easter Sunday.
Should the policy be adopted, the committee recommends the council writes to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment requesting advertising be undertaken to increase awareness of employers’ statutory obligations for offering employees work on Easter Sunday.
The committee also recommends the council conducts a review of the policy 90 days after Easter Tuesday, 2018, to see if it worked as anticipated.
Committee members Cr Damian Newell, Cr Kate Wilson, Cr Marie Laufiso and chairman Cr Andrew Whiley constructed a matrix to show each other’s thoughts on whether opening on Easter Sunday would have a positive (2), neutral (0) or negative (-2) impact on the Ed Sheeran concerts, workers’ rights, business freedom of choice, and family and spiritual considerations.
The results showed there was support for recommending the council adopts the policy.In the final vote, all but Cr Laufiso recommended adoption of the policy.
Councillors agreed it had not been an easy decision.
Cr Newell said it was "harder to pick than a broken nose".
"None of us walked in here with the decision made."
He said the Ed Sheeran concerts were "a rare and exceptional opportunity" for the city, the likes of which he believed the city would "not be likely to see again any time soon".
"The economic benefit to the city, however, is a huge unknown and must be balanced with the rights of workers and their families."
Cr Whiley said it had been a debate held by councils across the country.
He said Easter Sunday was not a public holiday.
It was "one of those anomalies" considered a day for family and spiritual activities.
"It’s an important date in the calendar for many, and that really was a difficult one for me.
"Ed Sheeran is going to make this an important day.
"It’s not only going to be important to the residents of Dunedin. It’s going to be important to the visitors to Dunedin."
For that reason, he said the council’s vote on December 11 was going to be very important.
Cr Wilson said, like the other councillors, she had tried to vote on the basis of the submissions the committee received, not on her own personal bias. She believed the councillors should be comfortable with their votes.
