Getting your player ready...
The latest bumps on the economy’s road to recovery could not have come at a worse time for holiday job seekers. While retailers are still holding out hope for decent holiday sales, the slowdown is likely to dampen expectations and reduce demand for extra seasonal workers.
Seasonal job gains in the retail sector will be about the same or possibly lower than a year ago, when employment grew by 627,600 from October through December. The retail environment has improved significantly since 2008, when the recession was at its worst. However, retailers are seeing several signs that consumer spending is dipping just as they are beginning to make decisions about how many workers to add for the upcoming holidays. This does not bode well for seekers. It would be surprising if holiday hiring exceeded last year’s level. Employment gains most definitely will not reach pre-recession levels, which averaged around 720,000 extra seasonal workers added from October through December. Most indications so far point to about the same level of hiring as last year Optimism among retailers took a hit with the Commerce Department’s latest report showing that August retail sales were unchanged from the previous month and July sales were adjusted downward. Retailers undoubtedly are hoping that consumers are simply saving their money for bigger spending over the holidays. But even if retailers foresee strong sales, it may not result in increased hiring. A recent survey of major U.S. retailers by management consultants at the Hay Group found that 68 percent expect sales to be higher than last year. Yet, the same percentage (68 percent) plan to hire the same number of seasonal workers as last year. About one-fourth of respondents said they plan to reduce the number of seasonal hires. In late September, Macy’s announced they were hiring 78,000 seasonal workers while Toys “R” Us announced that it would hire about 45,000 seasonal workers this year, the same number of extra workers for the holiday season as last year. Discount Shoe Warehouse, which enjoyed double-digit sales gains in the quarter ending July 31, reports that it is not planning an increase in seasonal hiring this year. An additional factor that may suppress increased hiring is the fact that retailers are heading into the holiday season with about 160,000 more workers than a year ago. Of course, none of this should discourage holiday job seekers from conducting a search, starting now. Even if seasonal hiring is flat, we are still talking about an extra 620,000 being added to retail payrolls, beginning in October.
Furthermore, there is constant churn in the retail industry. It has some of the highest turnover rates of any industry. You may walk into a store one day and they are not hiring. Walk in the next day and they may have had an employee quit and plan to replace him.
The best opportunities for seasonal job seekers will be at the large discounters like Target and Wal-Mart, which will be heavily favored by cost-conscious consumers this holiday season. However, job seekers may have to look beyond the sales clerk positions for available spots.
The big box stores need extra workers on the floor, but they also need extra workers in their shipping facilities and overnight stocking positions. Opportunities also exist outside of retail, in areas like catering and with shipping companies such as UPS and FedEx. Job seekers should also be prepared to be on standby. In other words, retailers may conduct interviews in September and October and prepare a list of hirable candidates that they will call only when it becomes obvious that more manpower is needed. According to one hiring manager, the biggest mistake job applicants make when seeking a holiday position is “demanding a specific schedule from prospective employers.” Temporary workers must be prepared to be flexible.
Seasonal job gains in the retail sector will be about the same or possibly lower than a year ago, when employment grew by 627,600 from October through December. The retail environment has improved significantly since 2008, when the recession was at its worst. However, retailers are seeing several signs that consumer spending is dipping just as they are beginning to make decisions about how many workers to add for the upcoming holidays. This does not bode well for seekers. It would be surprising if holiday hiring exceeded last year’s level. Employment gains most definitely will not reach pre-recession levels, which averaged around 720,000 extra seasonal workers added from October through December. Most indications so far point to about the same level of hiring as last year Optimism among retailers took a hit with the Commerce Department’s latest report showing that August retail sales were unchanged from the previous month and July sales were adjusted downward. Retailers undoubtedly are hoping that consumers are simply saving their money for bigger spending over the holidays. But even if retailers foresee strong sales, it may not result in increased hiring. A recent survey of major U.S. retailers by management consultants at the Hay Group found that 68 percent expect sales to be higher than last year. Yet, the same percentage (68 percent) plan to hire the same number of seasonal workers as last year. About one-fourth of respondents said they plan to reduce the number of seasonal hires. In late September, Macy’s announced they were hiring 78,000 seasonal workers while Toys “R” Us announced that it would hire about 45,000 seasonal workers this year, the same number of extra workers for the holiday season as last year. Discount Shoe Warehouse, which enjoyed double-digit sales gains in the quarter ending July 31, reports that it is not planning an increase in seasonal hiring this year. An additional factor that may suppress increased hiring is the fact that retailers are heading into the holiday season with about 160,000 more workers than a year ago. Of course, none of this should discourage holiday job seekers from conducting a search, starting now. Even if seasonal hiring is flat, we are still talking about an extra 620,000 being added to retail payrolls, beginning in October.
The big box stores need extra workers on the floor, but they also need extra workers in their shipping facilities and overnight stocking positions. Opportunities also exist outside of retail, in areas like catering and with shipping companies such as UPS and FedEx. Job seekers should also be prepared to be on standby. In other words, retailers may conduct interviews in September and October and prepare a list of hirable candidates that they will call only when it becomes obvious that more manpower is needed. According to one hiring manager, the biggest mistake job applicants make when seeking a holiday position is “demanding a specific schedule from prospective employers.” Temporary workers must be prepared to be flexible.
