Valley Target workers protest over Thanksgiving shifts

With many Black Friday deals starting early, there's a battle brewing among store workers who are being asked to work Thanksgiving night.

This year Target, Toys R Us, Walmart, Sears and Kmart will open their doors between 8 and 9 p.m. Thanksgiving night to let in the hoards of Black Friday shoppers looking for great deals.

The early opening is not sitting well with workers, families and even some Black Friday shoppers who will now have to leave their Thanksgiving meal to work or line up.

"I was disappointed," said Debra Hernandez whose mother works at Target.

After Target announced its early opening, Debra's mother had to cancel her Thanksgiving plans with family.

"It’s a time for family and spending time with people who travel from out of town. Target is a big company, and one day or a few more hours to spend with your family is okay. You've got to remember family is important," said Hernandez

Hernandez heard about an online petition to "Save Thanksgiving" and quickly looked it up.

"I was happy someone was doing something," said Hernandez. She is now circulating the petition among friends, family and co-workers.

Brent Haglund who works with Hernandez also jumped on the "Save Thanksgiving" petition.

"You know people in retail should have Thanksgiving to themselves too," said Haglund.

Haglund admits he's a Black Friday shopper, but said the sales creeping into the Thanksgiving holiday is getting out of control.

"It's just kind of ridiculous and it's just going to get earlier and earlier every year. The point of Black Friday is that it's on Friday, not Thursday," said Haglund.

Target spokesperson Molly Snyder responded in email  to the petition writing:

"Target’s opening time was carefully evaluated with our guests, team and the business in mind. Across the country, team member preferences were considered in creating our store staffing schedules. Thanksgiving weekend is one of the busiest of the year, and we appreciate our Target team’s flexibility on this weekend and throughout the holiday season."

At this time, the petition has over 200,000 signatures, but it's hard to say if it will make a difference in the rush for Black Friday deals now on Thanksgiving Day.

"I hope it will make a difference, at least we're trying to make a difference," said Hernandez.

"It doesn't mean it couldn't help for people next year," said Haglund.