During the past six months the council's social policy and bylaws team, which is putting together a report to go before the governing body when it makes its decision, has surveyed thousands of Aucklanders on whether they thought more shops should be able to open on Easter Sunday and the reasons for their views.
About 2000 people submitted online feedback through the council's Shape Auckland website and another 1600 were selected by Colmar Brunton.
The Colmar Brunton research found 55 per cent of respondents were in favour of relaxing the laws on Easter Sunday trading but 42 per cent wanted the status quo.
About 68 per cent of people who took the Shape Auckland survey said the rules around Easter Sunday trading should stay the same and 31 per cent said they would prefer more shops to be able to open.
Auckland student Lilly Peacocke was among many Shape Auckland respondents who wanted the restrictions to remain due to concerns retail workers would miss out on a mandatory break from work if the rules were changed.
The Holidays Act 2003 states workers have the right to decline work on Easter Sunday without giving their employer a reason.
However, Peacocke, a 25-year-old who has worked in retail and hospitality on and off for the last five years, said she believed in practice, most retail workers wouldn't be in the position to say no to working because of the power difference between them and their employers.
"It might just be that managers say 'if you don't want to work Easter Sunday then you won't have a job'. That kind of stuff will go on whether there's a law against it or not."
However, scores of others - including Rodney local board chairwoman Beth Houlbrooke - said in their Shape Auckland feedback business owners should have the freedom to make decisions about when their retail store opened on Easter.
Houlbrooke said her stance was the council should let "anyone, anywhere, to open any day of the week that they want to".
She said she couldn't think of an instance where a retail worker would be "forced" to work a holiday day - like Easter Sunday - when they didn't want to. "I think most employers want to look after their staff."
Foodstuffs spokeswoman Angela Laird said the company's position on Easter Sunday trading was "about enabling individuals to exercise personal choices" and retail employees would be free to choose whether they worked that day.
Mike Sinclair, Auckland Council's social policy and bylaws manager, said Auckland was a diverse region and any decision by the council would generate considerable debate.
If the council voted today in favour of creating a policy on Easter Sunday trading, it would release a proposal to the public in October and anyone could make formal submissions within four weeks before a final decision was announced in February next year.
