Paul Lindsay

Christmas is a national holiday in the U.S., the U.K., and a host of other countries. For many people—regardless of their religion—it’s a paid day off from work. But employers actually aren’t compelled to grant the benefit, at least in the States and in Britain. If you get to stay home on December 25th, it’s due to company policy or specific contract rights. With some jobs, of course, working on Christmas is part of the deal when you sign on. This coming Monday, cadres of nurses and doctors, fire fighters and police officers will be on duty for at least part of the day. There was a time when working on Christmas was the rule—not the exception. The devoutly Christian Puritan settlers in Massachusetts banned all celebrations of the day, associating such events with paganism and idolatry. (England had similar prohibitions, as well.) Even after such laws were formally repealed, making merry on Christmas was long frowned upon socially. The holiday, as we now know it, didn’t really ascend