Category: Business

Source: Radio New Zealand

Customer care workers at Woolworths are on strike until midnight on Wednesday, in protest of the removal of working-from-home privileges and a mandatory one weekend day off.

It’s the third strike by Workers First Union members in the customer care team in the past fortnight, the union says, following four rounds of negotiations for better pay and conditions in the past two months.

These workers are responsible for assisting with online ordering and logistics, customer complaints and refunds, and queries about ‘Everyday Rewards’, Park said.

Workers First organiser Elle Sun-Min Park said members were asking for higher wages, and pushing back against attempts to remove existing entitlements such as one weekend day off per week, and the ability to work from home.

Some staff were hired as remote workers following the pandemic, she said, and had now moved out of the city.

They were also protesting a requirement to be available, on-call, for 12 hours per working day, while only being paid for eight, she said.

Some 105 staff were involved in the strike action, and the union expected it would cause delays for customer enquiries, particularly this close to Christmas.

RNZ has approached Woolworths for comment.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

• Busiest shopping day of the year
• Peak time 12 noon-1 pm – 563,303 transactions
• Per second peak – 167 transactions
• Number of sales beats Black Friday, but lowest Christmas Eve in six years

Christmas Eve has been the busiest shopping day of the year with 9,745 sales a minute at its peak.

Payments company Worldline says noon to 1pm saw 563,303 sales recorded on its network, down by about 7 percent on a year ago.

The company’s network covers about three-quarters of the electronic terminals in operation.

Worldline did not have a dollar value for spending, but the peak number of transactions was the lowest for the past six years and well shy of the record 679,436 in 2019, before the pandemic.

Earlier this month it noted rising sales in the first three weeks of the month, but they remained 1.3 percent lower than 2024, with most parts of the country trailing the previous year’s spending.

Official data from Stats NZ to the end of November showed a small rise in spending on the previous month, to 1.6 percent higher for the year.

Retail spending has been subdued as households have remained cautious because of high prices and a slow benefit from lower interest rates, and as well as concerns about the soft labour market.

However, recent surveys have shown improving consumer sentiment with ANZ bank’s monthly report showing confidence at its highest level in four years.

Boxing Day is traditionally the country’s favourite shopping day, but with Black Friday spending also softer this year the amount going through retailers’ terminals may also be down on a year ago.

Adding a dampener to consumer spending may be the recent rises in longer term fixed mortgage rates because of higher wholesale rates.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

A customer who had his IKEA order refunded on Christmas Eve says there are problems with the way the retailer is handling orders.

The man, who did not want to be identified, ordered furniture items including a loft bed and desk.

He was told the bed would be delivered in two boxes.

“One box supplied was for a different bunk bed set and was incompatible. IKEA could not locate the correct box and advised there was no further stock available, with no timeframe provided for restock.

“Although I clearly stated that I did not want to cancel and was prepared to wait, IKEA proceeded to cancel the order unilaterally and arrange collection.”

The legs of the desk were delivered, he said, but the top was not.

He was also charged a $79 delivery fee.

He said the bed had been the main reason for his purchase.

“Its unavailability forced a cancellation outcome that I did not choose. From a consumer perspective, this resembles a bait-and-switch dynamic: a high-value, well-priced core item attracts the purchase decision, but when that item cannot be supplied, the customer is left with incomplete alternatives, delivery costs, or pressure to substitute or upsell. I did not agree to any substitution, nor was a viable timeframe provided.

“Availability was described as indeterminate, potentially several months, which is not a viable option for my son, who requires a bed immediately.”

IKEA has experienced a number of delays since it opened its first New Zealand shop, in Auckland. RNZ reported last week that it shut its customer support centre to focus on rebooking customer orders and resolving outstanding cases.

An IKEA spokesperson aid it had made significant progress in delivering outstanding orders.

“Over the past week, our teams have worked intensively to move through the early volume of orders. All truck deliveries were successfully rebooked by Saturday, and parcel orders are on track to be sent by early next week.

“To support ongoing momentum, additional delivery slots for both parcel and truck orders will be released each week throughout the new year, following a staggered approach to help manage volume and provide customers with greater flexibility and certainty. Click and collect slots are now reopened for kitchen orders, and further slots for other product ranges will be released progressively in the new year.”

The spokesperson said demand had been beyond expectations.

“We are committed to fully resolving all orders to consistently deliver the reliable experience customers expect from IKEA – now and into the year ahead.

“As New Zealanders head into the holiday season, we encourage all customers to visit us in-store to enjoy the full IKEA experience.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

It’s the time of year when it can be easy to forget which day it is, or whether the scorched almonds you just ate should be counted as breakfast or lunch.

But for retailers around the country – and the staff working in them – keeping track of the rules is important through the holidays.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Labour Inspectorate says employers and employees should understand their legal obligations around the public holidays.

Which days do shops have to shut?

There are three-and-a-half days a year that most shops have to close by law: Christmas Day, Good Friday and Easter Sunday, as well as until 1pm on Anzac Day.

So most retail workers should be getting Christmas Day off.

Which shops can open?

Businesses that are an “essential shop or business” or have an area exemption can open.

That includes dairies, petrol stations, restaurants and cafes, and even sometimes hairdressers if they want to open.

Some shops can open because they have an area exemption, which is generally granted in tourist destinations such as Taupō or Queenstown.

Do you have to work a public holiday?

You usually can only be required to work public holidays if it is stated in your employment agreement and the public holiday is on a day you will normally work.

If you work any of the four public holidays over the Christmas and New Year period you should be paid time-and-a-half for the hours worked and receive an alternative full day off if it was a day you normally work.

If an employee does not work on the public holiday but it is a day they would normally work, they are entitled to their normal daily pay.

If you would not normally work but volunteer to, you might only get time-and-a-half.

Could you be paid less than normal?

Alison Maelzer, a partner at law firm Hesketh Henry, said people would only be paid time-and-a-half only for the hours worked on the public holiday.

“This means that if the work hours on that day are reduced, the employee may actually receive less than they would have on a ‘normal’ work day. Note that this is proposed to be changed under the forthcoming leave reforms.

“If an employee works on a public holiday that falls on a day that would otherwise be a working day for them, the employee will receive a full, paid, alternative holiday to be taken at some other time. This applies no matter how many hours were worked on the public holiday.”

How many public holidays can you get?

This year, Christmas Day is a Thursday so the Thursday and Friday are public holidays, as well as the Thursday and Friday the following week.

When holidays are “mondayised” because they fall on a weekend, you are only entitled to public holiday pay and days in lieu on one of each public holiday – you can’t claim for the day and then the “mondayised” holiday.

What if you don’t have a normal work pattern?

The government advises that if an employee does not have a clear work pattern, or there is a lot of variation in their work times, they need to agree with their employer if a public holiday is a day they would otherwise be working, and what they would normally be paid.

Malezer said “average daily pay” could only be used if it was not possible to determine the relevant daily pay, or if it varied within the pay period of the holiday.

Can you be forced to take leave?

Employers can require staff to take annual leave during a Christmas/New Year closedown but must give at least 14 days’ written notice.

Public holidays during a closedown still need to be paid if they fall on days that would otherwise be working days.

An employer can only have one annual closedown in a 12-month period.

What if you’re leaving?

Maelzer said when an employee was leaving an organisation, the employer must nominally ‘count out’ the number of days of entitled annual holidays from the termination date – the holidays the employee is entitled to after working for 12 months.

“If a public holiday falls within this period, and it is a day that the employee would otherwise have worked, they are entitled to be paid for that public holiday.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

• Takeover would bring Bremworth together with rival Godfrey Hirst
• Regulator not convinced deal would not “substantially lessen” competition
• Decision pushed out until mid-March

The Commerce Commission has competition concerns about a takeover that would bring the country’s two biggest carpet manufacturers a single owner.

The regulator said it was not convinced at this stage that a takeover of Bremworth Carpets by US-based Mohawk Industries, which owns Godfrey Hirst and Feltex, would not reduce competition.

“We are currently not satisfied that the proposed acquisition will not have, or would not be likely to have, the effect of substantially lessening competition in one or more relevant markets,” the commission said in a statement .

Among the commission’s concerns were the impact on competition by having the two leading domestic carpet makers and suppliers owned by the same company, the impact on prices, whether there was sufficient competition from other manufacturers or importers, and effect on customers.

The commission had been due to make a decision before Christmas but has now pushed that out to mid-March next year, with the prospect it might be extended further.

Bremworth’s survival

Bremworth’s board agreed in October to a takeover by Mohawk Industries, for between $70 million-$77m, through an agreed scheme of arrangement, which requires a lower level of shareholder approval.

It followed the launch of a [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/545155/bremworth-shareholders-force-out-most-of-carpet-maker-s-directors

strategic review in February], and the ousting of directors and chief executive in a boardroom coup this year.

At the time, Bremworth chairman Rob Hewett said the buyout agreement was the best outcome for shareholders after it looked at several potential buyers, and was unanimously backed by the board.

The company has struggled from declining market share as it decided to stop making synthetic carpets in 2020 and sell only wool products, a decision which it backtracked on this year. Its Napier plant was severely damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters says the India free trade deal has been rushed through for political gain, and more wins could have been secured with longer negotiations.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Trade Minister Todd McClay announced the deal at the Beehive on Monday.

The agreement – which Luxon hopes to have signed off next year – includes significant wins for several industries, but only limited gains for dairy.

With New Zealand First agreeing to disagree with National and ACT, support will be needed from across the political aisle to get the majority support needed to pass it through Parliament.

Labour is also withholding support for now, saying the deal does look like a “very small step” forward in a world of trade disruption but the dairy sector will be disappointed.

Labour’s Trade spokesperson Damien O’Connor said meaningful access for the dairy sector must be the priority, and it was naive of Luxon to commit to a deal with India as a campaign commitment in 2023.

Peters told RNZ the deal was neither free, nor fair.

“We should not have rushed it through,” he said. “We had been set a target by the prime minister of over the next three years from 2023… well, we got almost a year to go. This is not a good deal, because it has that aspect of being rushed about it.

“I’ve seen deals where the objective was for political purposes rather than economic advantage for New Zealand. This is one of those.

He said the deal was “far too generous”.

“Australia’s Free Trade Agreement has no such conditions. The UK free trade deal has no such conditions. So, why did they get imposed upon us?”

Peters said he would be surprised if the other parties in Parliament, like Labour, did not share his concerns.

“When you make a campaign commitment inside a coalition government, you listen to your partners… I’d be surprised if those other people in Parliament were not concerned with the same issues of alarm that we are facing on this matter.

“The previous Labour government was trying and it failed because of certain barriers, and here we are in this case signing a deal because we’ve taken down our barriers, and those barriers were in our national interest.

“Our market’s totally open to India and has been for a long, long time. All we’re asking for is a fair deal in reverse. And this is not.

He said in the 1980s we thought the whole world would adopt free trade, but they haven’t.

“They’ve kept their protections up, and here we are trying to graft ourselves back into the international economy.”

Peters pinpointed a lack of wins for dairy.

“We needed to spend more time with time to get them to understand that they’re going to need huge food supplies. Going forward, their level of production per cow is far too low compared to New Zealand,” he said.

“It’s in that way we could have helped them in their own market, and both of us profited.”

He said he was confident better terms could have been secured.

“I believe that by spending more time with Indians, we could convince them of the advantages of a fair deal for us. That’s what I’ve always believed.

“Because if you can’t get a fair deal, then you just have to walk away.”

RNZ has sought further comment from Trade Minister Todd McClay.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealanders can expect to see a large impact on the economy over time thanks to the free-trade agreement with India, one economist says.

The government on Monday announced the deal which reduces tariffs on 95 percent of exports.

Almost 60 percent of New Zealand exports to India will be tariff-free when the deal takes effect, increasing to 82 percent over 10 years.

Brad Olsen, chief executive at Infometrics, said sheep meat would be one of the big beneficiaries. Its tariff will drop from 33 percent to zero immediately. “That fell quite considerably after the Australians got their free-trade agreement so for an industry like that there’s definitely upside and further price gains,” he said.

Forestry products would also benefit, as well as fruit, wine and manuka honey.

“Is a general member of the public going to notice it when they walk down the street? No, but no more than anyone notices the China FTA while walking down the street. It’s not necessarily directly apparent, but my goodness it does make a large impact on the economy over time.”

He said New Zealand’s trade with India was limited “in the scheme of things”.

“We sent 1.7 percent of New Zealand’s total good exports to India over the 12 months to September 2025.

“Our biggest earner is actually travel, Indian nationals who travel to New Zealand and spend money here. After that it’s the likes of fruit and nuts, aluminium, iron and steel, wood, wool and some of those high-value dairy products.”

He said there would be gains in those areas over time because the Indian economy has room to grow. “The Indian economy hasn’t got cranking to the degree that China has in terms of development over time. It’s one of those changes where you won’t necessarily see it directly in the economy in the short term but longer-term this is an important strategic opportunity.

“If you saw over time Indian GDP per capita increase like you’ve seen as China’s developed, the market opportunity there for New Zealand is huge. Particularly when we know that China is already seeing a population decline. Our potential market there is shrinking over time whereas India is still only growing and will be for a considerable period.”

The agreement includes a right to negotiate for an upgrade if better access is granted in the future to other countries and includes preferential market access for apples and mānuka honey for the first time in an Indian trade deal.

New Zealand will provide for 1667 temporary three-year non-renewable work visas per year for Indian nationals in “priority jobs where New Zealand has skills shortages, including doctors, nurses, teachers, ICT and engineering… with all immigration screening and qualification/experience requirements remaining unaltered”. An additional 1000 places each year under the Working Holiday Scheme will be allocated for Indian nationals.

Olsen said that would probably displace other migration that might otherwise have happened.

“At the moment, net migration is fairly low and the economy doesn’t need as much talent. It does in some areas.

“When migration starts to get going…and needs a lot more talent these numbers become a fairly small part of the overall migration picture. So again we don’t see it as materially changing things, but there are, you know, opportunities for people to come in temporarily to work in New Zealand to gain some skills and then to go back to India.”

He said it was a win-win overall.

“It’s easy to talk about gains from a free-trade agreement when free trade is all the range,” Olsen said.

“Back 15, 20 years ago everyone was doing free trade. To achieve a free trade agreement like this when everyone is directly retreating from free trade is quite impressive.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Well-worn shoes, some vintage soft drink cans and a date with a rhinoceros – or a Shortland Street star – these are some of the top purchases Kiwis were considering on Trade Me this year.

“We’ve seen everything from one-of-a-kind sporting memorabilia to opportunities like meeting a rhino calf,” Trade Me spokesperson Tiana Barns said.

The top-viewed marketplace listing of the year was – well, a pair of old shoes, but not just any old shoes.

They were the spikes worn by Tauranga 15-year-old Sam Ruthe when he became the youngest runner to break four minutes for the mile in March, with a 3m 58.35s performance at Auckland’s Mt Smart Stadium.

“One young owner,” declared the advertisement. “Can vouch for the faint whiff of achievement.”

The size 10.5 US spikes attracted 151 bids and 41,457 views, Trade Me said.

“This listing from the Bay of Plenty captured the attention of sports fans across the motu, celebrating the rising star in athletics,” Barns said.

The sale raised more than $11,000 for coach Craig Kirkwood and his Tauranga training group.

Second place went to a charity listing for a Queenstown escape, which raised money for St John, viewed 16,558 times, selling for $7550.05.

But for proof that almost anything can be flogged off for a little coin, the third-place auction was a couple of humble unopened 30-year-old Coca Cola cans. The limited edition ‘Salute to Customers’ Coca-Cola cans from 1992 and 1993 ended up selling for $230 with 108 bids and had 15,356 views.

“These are perfect for the ultimate Coke collector,” the seller advertised. However, there were a few catches – “When I lift the cans I hear no fizz sound, suggesting that the cans have gone flat during this time,” they added.

Just in case you were thinking about it, the seller noted, they do not recommend drinking them.

In other clearing out the pantry auction news, an enterprising seller also tried to unload a bag of the iconic Kiwi chocolate treat Jaffas, which were discontinued this year due to declining sales.

Despite putting down marketing copy like “this is your only chance to relive the great time in NZ history where you rolled them down the movie theatre when you got them in your 50c mix and when you ate to many and spewed in granddad’s caravan,” the auction sadly didn’t sell in its original listing, but it did rack up almost 15,000 views.

“We constantly see Kiwis trying to make a quick buck when their favourite food gets discontinued. While the seller was hoping to fetch $100 for the 150g bag, it unfortunately didn’t get any bites,” Barns said.

Sports memorabilia, besides Sam Ruthe’s shoes, were also in the mix – a Houston Rockets jersey worn by Kiwi superstar Steven Adams and cricket bats signed by the White Ferns and Black Caps also rated in the marketplace top 10.

Other charity auctions also ranked, with an opportunity to meet a rhino calf at Auckland Zoo selling for $1730, and an exclusive dinner with Shortland Street actors Ben Barrington & Will Hall raising $2510.

If you had a little more cash to spend, a car that might just take you back to the future also grabbed eyeballs – a 1981 Delorean DMC-12, like Marty McFly famously drove into the timestream, drew 104,371 views in the motoring listings, with a final bid of $100,000.

“The DeLorean, famous for its role in Back to the Future, brings a huge amount of movie magic to the table,” Head of Trade Me Motors Brendan Hall said.

“The massive viewing numbers prove that the dream of owning a piece of pop culture history is very much alive, and at a six-figure price, it’s a relatively accessible classic compared to the supercars on this list.”

Other big viewers in the motoring category were a Subaru Forester that once belonged to F1 driver Liam Lawson, and a couple fancy Lamborghinis.

“Whether it’s a piece of history, an act of charity, or something that just makes you laugh, these most-viewed listings are a great snapshot of what we have been talking about this year,” Barns said.

The complete list of top viewed Trade Me marketplace sales 2025:

1. Sam Ruthe’s used spikes less than four minutes use

41,457 views

Sold for $11,408.35

2. Queenstown Getaway for a Family of Four – St John

16,558 views

$7,550.05

3. Two Full Unopened 30+ year old Coca-Cola Cans – Limited Edition

15,356 views

$230.00

4. Jaffas The End Of a Kiwi icon

14,451 views

Unsold

5. Steven Adams Houston Rockets Jersey – Authentic Game-Worn & Signed

13,221 views

$6,160.00

6. Meet this rhino calf AND contribute to rhinoceros’ conservation in the wild!

12,113 views

$1,730.00

7. A Star-Studded Dinner with Ben Barrington & Will Hall

11,808 views

$2,510.00

8. Own a piece of New Zealand cricketing history

11,676 views

$4,210.00

9. Harley Davidson Kenworth Truck Bar Man Cave Extreme!

10,950 views

$5,571.00

10. Western Springs Speedway Safety Fence and Race Control Lights

10,915 views

Unsold

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The Electricity Authority has lodged a formal complaint alleging Genesis did not adequately comply with a request to deliver power into the grid.

It says the company breached the Electricity Industry Participation Code over an incident in January last year and could be liable for a penalty of up to $2 million.

The authority said Genesis did not comply with dispatch instructions in respect of its Huntly power station, or immediately advise Transpower why it could not, on 26 January 2024.

The dispatch instructions are given by Transpower to generators to provide more electricity generation when required.

The authority said compliance with them was critical to maintain the stability, reliability and efficiency of the power system, to ensure sufficient electricity supply to meet demand at all time sand to ensure fair and transparent operations, avoiding the risk of price distortion.

“If generation is suddenly unavailable (for example, through an unexpected outage), this can have a flow on effect such as a localised cascade failure of the power system and regional loss of supply.

“The code requires generators to comply with dispatch instruction and to communicate with the System Operator if issues arise.”

The authority said the reported breach had a moderate level of severity overall but Genesis had a history of alleged non-compliance.

“There was a potential security impact from a shortage of generation provided due to non-compliance with a dispatch instruction because the shortage of generation may have had an impact on frequency keeping stations to the top end of their frequency keeping band, limiting their capacity to provide frequency keeping services and support in case of an under-frequency event.”

The complaint will be assessed by the rulings panel, which as the power to make remedial orders.

Remedial orders include pecuniary penalties, compliance orders, compensation orders, and private and public warnings or reprimands.

The liability limit applying to industry participants is a pecuniary penalty not exceeding $2 million and a further amount not exceeding $10,000 for every day or part of a day during which the breach continues.

In a statement, Genesis said it endeavoured to comply with the Electricity Industry Participation Code and had worked closely with the Electricity Authority regarding the alleged breach.

“While we are disappointed that a complaint has been escalated to the Rulings Panel, we will continue to work through the process to a resolution.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Anyone applying for a home loan now could face an extra wait for an answer.

Mortgage advisers say a busier-than-usual period for applications, coupled with the impending Christmas break, could mean a wait for some borrowers.

Glen McLeod, head of Link Advisory, said turnaround times were longer than usual.

“Some lenders paused pre-approvals in early December to focus on processing live deals. Recent cashback offers created a surge in refinancing activity, adding extra pressure on lender systems.

“If you apply now, approvals are likely to be scheduled for early 2026.”

ASB said it had received a significant increase in home loan applications over recent weeks.

“The time to approve a loan will depend on a variety of factors, including the completeness of information provided.

“Our triaging process and recruitment drive for an additional 80 home loan specialists earlier this year is helping us deliver for customers and prospective home-buyers during this busy period, across both our adviser and in-house channels.”

ANZ New Zealand general manager for home owners Emily Mendes Riberio said it had encouraged staff to take leave where possible.

“Shortened working weeks, due to public holidays, can mean the loan approval process takes longer.

“This year we’ve seen strong demand for home loans at ANZ over December, and our teams are working through these applications as quickly as possible.

“ANZ’s lending team continues to process lending applications over the holiday season, but we would encourage customers to get in touch and make lending applications as early as possible.”

Westpac said it was seeing high demand for lending, too.

“To help manage this we have more bankers than usual working over the holiday period. We’ve also rolled out tech improvements over the past few months to help us process applications faster.

“We’re currently processing applications through our own channels within two business days. The turnaround time for new customers through mortgage adviser channels is 10-12 days, however we are prioritising applications that require a decision before Christmas, and with extra staff on board we are working to clear the backlog over the holiday period.”

BNZ said it had a lot of staff working through the festive period and eligible applications could be processed within 24 hours.

But Jenna Broadhurst, BNZ general manager of home lending and private banking, said that might not be the only hurdle for home-buyers, though.

“You need to be mindful that a lot of solicitors are closed during the short weeks, whilst you can obtain a lending approval or pre-approval, it is unlikely that the due diligence process will be unable to be completed if your solicitor is not working during the break.

“It’s also important to be aware that offices and services provided by Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) will have reduced availability or full closures during the 2025/2026 summer holiday period and it would pay to check the LINZ website for those details.”

Mortgage adviser Jeremy Andrews, of Key Mortgages, said this year had been “exceptional” for banks because they had been offering cashbacks for purchases and refinances with good equity.

That has driven high levels of switching during the year as well as normal application business.

“Whether you’d get an answer back before mid-January depends largely on which bank you’re with, and if you’re only planning on going to that bank directly or else via a mortgage adviser or different bank.”

He said ANZ, for example, was not offering preapprovals at present.

“This gives an indication of how stretched bank staff and capacities now are.

“Solicitors typically take close to three weeks’ holidays which is the biggest impact on trying to finalise property purchases over Christmas, because typically both the vendor and purchaser’s lawyers would need to be available. This year I haven’t found a single solicitor starting back at work prior to 12th January.

“A lot of other related industries like real estate agents, property inspectors, valuers, etc. take similar breaks or have skeleton staff and reduced hours too.”

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