Media release
21 September, 2011
Big Day Off is on again
The firm of architects that brought New Zealand the ‘Big Day Off’ in 2010 is doing it again in 2011.
Auckland-based Peddle Thorp Architects is giving its staff an extra ‘statutory’ day off on September 30.
Last year the 40 staff members at Peddle Thorp were the envy of many nine-to-fivers when they enjoyed an extra day off
as part of a staff reward scheme. The creative thinking of their bosses was designed to bridge the long wintry gap
between the Queen’s Birthday and Labour Day holidays.
This year the company’s directors have decided to repeat the exercise on September 30. Peddle Thorp director Terry
Barnes says the date ties in well with Auckland Architecture Week from September 24 to October 1.
“We’re not saying it’s a busman’s holiday but we believe many of our people are keen to dive right in to Architecture
Week,” Mr Barnes says.
“It has been a long year and the Big Day Off was hugely popular with our people in 2010, so we’re encouraging staff
again to take time away from their desks.”
Peddle Thorp is encouraging other businesses to join the Big Day Off initiative.
“We’d like to see other businesses do the same. It’s a fantastic way to build staff morale – we had such excellent
feedback from staff last year it was almost a foregone conclusion to repeat the event,” Mr Barnes says.
Architecture Week is an initiative of the Auckland branch of the NZ Institute of Architects. Peddle Thorp is supporting
the event with a presentation on its co-win of Waterfront Auckland’s design competition for a 300-room hotel in the
Wynyard Quarter.
A concept design by Fearon Hay and Peddle Thorp took out the competition ahead of four other short-listed firms for the
5-star hotel on Halsey St facing Auckland’s vibrant Viaduct harbour.
Details about Architecture Week are here: http://architectureweek.co.nz/.
ends