DIY retailer Wickes is rewarding its 8,000 employees with three days extra of paid holiday in December 2020.
The extra days of leave, that will run from 24 December to 26 December, is to reward employees for their hard work during the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, and to further support the wellbeing of staff.
The employer will close 235 of its stores over the same period to give all employees more time to rest and recover during the festive period. This is the first time in its 48-year history that Wickes has chosen to stop all operations for three consecutive days.
Furthermore, every employee will receive a gift card and discount voucher in December.
David Wood, chief executive, at Wickes, said: “The decision to close our stores and give our employees some meaningful time off was an easy one. It has been an unprecedented year and we wanted to take a moment to recognise the tremendous effort our team has gone to, in swiftly adapting to such unusual circumstances with an incredible can-do attitude.
"At a time when we usually connect with others, we felt it was right to support our employees with more time with friends and loved ones; we are sure our customers will understand why we feel this is important.”