Here Are The Retailers Hiring The Most Workers For The Holiday Season
24/7 Wall St.
Photo: By Peter Hilton on flickr
Each year, hundreds of thousands of temporary workers are hired by retailers to handle the demands of the holiday season.The number of seasonal workers added is considered a bellwether for the economy.
These are the retailers hiring the most people this holiday season >
This season, the projected number of additional hires is unchanged from last year and sales are forecast to be $465 billion, up 2.8% from last year. It is not a recovery when things to improve from a bad year.
While some retailers are doing well, others are reducing their seasonal hiring substantially.
24/7 Wall St. looked at the retailers hiring the most people this year to illustrate how important this trend is to the economy and these businesses.
Companies hire seasonal workers for a number of reasons: They are cheap, often earning $8 to $10 per hour, and are willing to work odd hours. This enables retailers to satisfy increased demands without adding a permanent expense to their bottom line.
The massive influx of seasonal workers, which can increase the total workforce of a company by 100% or more, serves another function for retailers: Hiring so many people for a short period allows employers to perform a large-scale talent search.
A select group of seasonal workers who prove themselves can get full-time positions after the holidays are over. According to Anne Marie Bishop, JCPenney (NYSE: JCP) spokeswoman, "Getting a seasonal position allows new associates to experience working at JCPenney and decide if it suits them," and it allows employers to try out new employees.
24/7 Wall St.'s analysis found that some companies, such as Macy's (NYSE: M)and Kohl's (NYSE: KSS), are adding 4% to 5% more than last year's seasonal hires because their businesses have grown. The companies' stocks are up.
Other companies are hiring fewer workers because they are doing worse than their competition. Best Buy's net income is flat from the previous year and its stock is down 40%. In September, the company cut its profit outlook significantly. To offset the reduction in seasonal hiring, the electronics retailer is extending the hours of its current workers.
24/7 Wall St. used data from a variety of sources, including company press releases; Challenger, grey & Christmas; the National Retail Federation; as well as various news outlets to identify seven major American retailers that plan on hiring the most seasonal employees this year. We also looked at the companies' revenue, total employees and the total number of stores to see how these businesses are faring and how significant the holiday hiring season is for them.
This post originally appeared at 24/7 Wall St.
6. JCPenney
Number of employees added: 35,000
Total employees: 156,000
Revenue: $17.7 billion
Total Stores: 1,108
JCPenney, the 22nd-largest retailer in the U.S., plans to hire 35,000 seasonal workers this year, up from 30,000 last year, according to the New York Times. While almost all will be fired at the end of the season, a few of these new positions are expected to be permanent. As reported in Hire Velocity, JCPenney uses this period as an opportunity to test out new workers, and will hire a portion of the best-performing ones full time after the holidays are over.
Source: 24/7 Wall Street.
5. Target
Total employees: 70,000
Total Stores: 873
Toys 'R' Us, the largest toy company in the world, experiences one of the biggest employment increases during the holidays. This year, it plans to add approximately 40,000 people, according to the South Bend Tribune. While that is roughly 5,000 less than last year, it is still an increase of nearly 60% from normal employment. According to job-applications.com, the nationwide average wage for seasonal jobs at the company is between $8 and $10.
3. Best Buy
Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) has struggled in the past year, and this holiday season is not looking any brighter. Last month, according to Reuters, the retailer announced that it expects holiday sales of consumer electronics to be weak. The company plans to add just 15,000 part-time workers -- far less than the 29,000 it hired last year. According to the Huffington Post, the company will also increase the hours of regular employees to make up for the missing hires.
2. Kohl's
1. Macy's
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