Black Friday begins earlier and earlier each year and continually cuts into the time of Thanksgiving.

Kent State students are some of the many retail workers who will have to leave their families and holiday festivities early this year.  

“I think a lot of people lose a sense of quality family time with the start times being earlier each year,” said Torrie Romigh, a senior middle childhood education major and Target supervisor.  “They feel they have to leave their Thanksgiving dinners extra early to get the best deals.”

Stores like Target, Walmart, Best Buy, JCPenney and Macy’s will be opening before many have even eaten their Thanksgiving dinners.

“Dinners are pushed earlier and rushed so that employees can get out to the stores and people can start lining up early,” said Sammie Anderson, a junior public health major and American Eagle associate.

Anderson expresses both frustration with having to leave family so early, but also excitement as this will be her first Black Friday working rather than shopping.

“I personally enjoy Black Friday shopping, but I try not to go out until at least 11 p.m. or later to ensure that I spent the most quality time possible with my family,” Anderson said.

When shopping this Black Friday, it’s important to be mindful that many workers had to leave their family gatherings to assist in stores.

“I have had to eat dinner by myself the past two years and my family eats after I leave,” said Cara Ungar, a senior integrated mathematics major and cashier lead at Bath and Body Works. “It is a requirement that we have to work on Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

Finding a way around not working the biggest holiday shopping day of the year is nearly impossible.

“It’s not required to work Black Friday, but it is very difficult to work your way around it,” Romigh said. “They try to have as many people working as possible and they black those dates out, so you are not able to request off unless it gets approved.”

Many businesses have already started running their sales online for this year’s Black Friday. This is causing shoppers to question whether or not it’s worth waiting in the long lines.

This article provided by the Times Union helps decipher whether or not Black Friday is really worth the trip. https://www.timesunion.com/business/article/Black-Friday-Join-the-crowd-or-take-a-pass-13401454.php

Jenna Langan is the Consumer Tech Reporter. Contact her at [email protected].