The Queensland government has admitted to a law-making bungle that could force supermarkets and other major shops in regional towns to shut for four days over Easter.
Industrial Relations Minister Grace Grace conceded to a "drafting omission" and pledged to fix the problem before the holiday.
The simple mistake, leaving the words "including Easter Saturday" out of a schedule of trading hours in last year's Trading (Allowable Hours) Amendment Act would prevent retailers trading on that day.
Without the wording, supermarkets in cities and towns such as Ayr, Blackwater, Mount Isa, Kingaroy and Longreach would be forced to close on the day, just as they would on any public holiday or Sunday.
It could cost workers money and leave shoppers unable to buy groceries at major supermarkets and across the Easter long weekend in certain parts of the state.
The affected zones are any town not within south-east Queensland, a tourist area or a list of 25 special zones including the Townsville and Cairns tourist areas and regional centres such as Mackay, Toowoomba, Rockhampton and smaller centres such as Biloela and Ingham.
Ms Grace pledged to fix the error before Easter, saying it was never the government's intention to leave the words out.
"This was an unintentional drafting omission, which was not immediately identified by stakeholders, in committee nor when the bill was debated in the house," she said, in a statement.
"When it was brought to our attention, and after working with the National Retail Association, we determined it would be amended and therefore fixed before Easter.
"I would hope this would receive the support of all parties."
The National Retail Association flagged the issue with the government and director of external relations Malcolm Cole said he was pleased with the government's response.
"There would have been a lot of cost involved in stocking and restocking supermarkets and, we think, a lot of inconvenience for consumers," he said.
Any closure would cost workers who would otherwise have volunteered to work on the day to take advantage of penalty rates.
"It is lucrative and the stores rarely have any trouble finding people who want to work," he said.
