A good news / bad news scenario is brewing for retailers’ seasonal hiring needs.

Consumer demand is up. Deloitte expects holiday sales to rise nearly 9% this year, potentially reaching $1.3 trillion.

But retailers are still having trouble filling open roles and the cost of goods keeps rising. Retailers are expecting to add 700,000 workers during the 2021 holiday season, reports Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Global supply chain issues are compounding this problem, though, and retailers are facing an extra $233 billion in cost of goods this holiday shopping season.

Employers, however, have already shown some versatility and tactics to recruit the seasonal hiring staff they need.

Here are 25 seasonal hiring stats every manager should know.

Seasonal Hiring Numbers

1. Employers added 194,000 jobs in September, down from 366,000 in August.
2. Leisure and hospitality businesses added fewer than 100,000 jobs for consecutive months.
3. UPS has announced 100,000 seasonal job openings and is pledging to offer roles within 30 minutes instead of its usual two-week hiring pace.
4. Walmart is bringing on 20,000 supply chain workers.
5. Arts and crafts retailer Michael’s invited more than 50% of last year’s in-store seasonal workers to stay on as regular employees.
6. Target is preparing to hire 100,000 seasonal workers for the holiday season, down from last year’s goal to hire 130,000.
7. Amazon is adding 125,000 full- and part-time employees.
8. Record second quarter sales and earnings at Dick’s Sporting Goods are helping drive 10,000 seasonal hiring openings.
9. Easy-to-fill online application forms can increase the application rate by 2.3%.
10. Macy’s is conducting walk-in applications where candidates may hear back the same day if they landed a seasonal hiring job.

Wage Hikes

11. Under Armour raised its minimum wage to $15, a 50% increase for some employees.
12. Amazon is paying fulfillment employees an average hourly starting wage between $18 – $22.50.
13. Leisure and hospitality wages are outpacing overall wages.
14. Some Target team members can earn an additional $2 an hour pay during “peak moments” of the holiday shopping season like Black Friday and Christmas Eve.
15. Walmart supply chain employees are paid an average of $20.37.
16. Wayfair boosted its minimum wage to $15 which benefits more than 40% of its employees.

Perks!

17. Dollar General is offering workers and truck drivers a $5,000 sign-on bonus.
18. Amazon will give some employees a signing bonus of up to $3,000, benefits, and paid tuition.
19. Target has introduced a new employee mobile app that lets workers add or swap shifts to create more flexible scheduling.
20. Some employees at Kohl’s will be eligible for a $100 – $400 bonus for working through the holidays.
21. Aside from healthcare, ‘flexible work schedules’ is the most important employee benefit.
22. More than 1 out of 4 companies has purchased new technology, for the first time, to passively track and monitor their employees. 
23. Dick’s Sporting Goods will be closed on Thanksgiving Day.
24. JOANN, the sewing and crafting chain, did not furlough or lay off any team members during the pandemic and instituted what it calls Premium Pay for all store and distribution workers in 2021.
25. Employees who work at least 30 hours per week at Kohl’s during the holiday season are eligible for medical, dental, and vision coverage.

Smarter, Safer Screening with EBI

Your workplace has changed forever. So should your hiring expectations.

It’s our goal to help you make smarter recruiting decisions and create safer hiring practices, no matter if you’re hiring full-time or seasonal employees.

For more insight into seasonal hiring and how background checks can help keep your workplace safe, check out EBI’s article “How to Optimize Your Background Screening Process for Post-Pandemic Hiring.”

For nearly 30 years, EBI has been an industry leader in modern talent acquisition. Let’s connect and find ways to help you meet the new expectations of this new workforce.