Thursday, December 20, 2007

Hopping Holidays

If you're working next week, it could be a busy one for you.

One-third of workers usually take off the entire stretch from Dec. 24 to Jan. 1, according to a survey by Harris Interactive for Kronos, a human resources consulting firm.

About a third are working on Monday, Christmas Eve -- mostly those in retail, shipping, service and religious jobs. Nearly two-thirds of workers who responded to the survey say they will have the day off because their organization gives a second holiday or because they still have the vacation time.

But some workers get no break because their work goes into overdrive during the holidays. http://SnagAJob.com reports that postal workers and clergy are the highest paid among those with holiday-hectic careers. Postal clerks earn around $21 an hour and ministers about $20 an hour, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data the Web site analyzed.

Plenty of other holiday helpers take home much smaller paychecks. Ticket takers at movie theaters get $8.40 an hour. And with so many other people off work, they're not likely to get a chance to pay much attention to holiday films.

-- Vickie Elmer