What is Seasonal Hiring?
Demands peak for different retailers during holiday season and the need to hire part time or full time seasonal employees peaks during such months – this trend is referred to as seasonal hiring. However note that other than just looking at the retailers and outlets for the seasonal jobs there are various opportunities in the agriculture sector (during harvesting time which is in fact an all-year affair).
Seasonal jobs are usually short-term job agreements where you could be working part-time or full-time on hourly pay or a salary.
These jobs can be ideal for the baby boomers – retirees and the college students who bring in their own specific skills, personality and experience to what these employers are looking for. Stores catering to the younger crowd would prefer to hire young floor representatives while the cashier stands and other fine dressing outlets would favor an experienced mature worker.
Who Hires Seasonal Workers?
Some of the stores which see demands rise as the holiday season approaches, sure enough we need more packages to be sent across the nation and the world and the consumers enjoy the sales as the retailers begin big time attractions – SALES! So these could be your possible bets this holiday season – look up their websites, follow them on Twitter and get some insider referrals to get some extra bucks or perhaps do a great job and who know you could be hired for a permanent some time later. (Most of these jobs are Part time and Full time and some stores also offer competitive pay and benefits, 401(k) plan and more for full-time hires)
| Hiring Company | Hiring When | Job Titles |
| Party City | Particularly during Halloween and Christmas time
– Expect Hiring to begin in August |
– Sales Associate
– Cashiers – Characters and greeters
|
| Halloween costumes stores | Halloween time frame specific
– Expect Hiring to begin in August |
– Sales Associate
– Cashiers – Characters and greeters
|
| UPS | Seasonal package delivery services spiking during Thanksgiving and Christmas time. However prefers to hire much before these months.
– Expect Hiring to begin in September
|
– Package Handlers
– Driver |
| Retailers like Target, Macys, and other large and small retail outletsToy stores like Toys’R’Us etc.
|
Many temp jobs open up for the Thanksgiving and Christmas sales months.
– Expect Hiring to begin in October, goes into November |
– Sales Associate
– Customer Service Specialist – Cashier |
| Beauty and Cosmetics Stores | Women tend to buy more beauty products during winter holiday season and these outlets and online stores open up new positions to keep up on the demand.
– Expect Hiring to begin in October
|
– Cosmetologist
– Sales Representative |
| Intuit & H&R Blocks | Tax preparer and supporting tax preparation advisors jobs around Tax filing season.
– Expect Hiring to begin in January
|
– Tax preparer
– Client Services – Office Leader |
| Home Depot, Lowes and other gardening specific stores | Spring is one of the busiest hiring months for these stores.
– Expect Hiring to begin in February. |
– General Warehouse Associate
– Cashier Associate – Assistant Manager |
Where to Find Seasonal Hiring Jobs?
Recommended job search is through:
- Networking and finding acquaintances who are working in the retail stores who would be glad to refer you
- Searching through the job boards but being specific about what you want
- Looking up local job postings in newspapers
- Targeting specific employers and walking in to these stores and asking when they would be opening up the seasonal hiring positions – don’t wait till they put up the “help wanted” sign.
Some Job Boards that might help make your seasonal job search easier:
Snagajob – offers seasonal hiring jobs through retailers in almost all states of the country.
SimplyHired – Pools in all available opportunities through various job boards on its website. And while you’re at it, add a job alert with the right keywords and the fresh new jobs get straight to your email inbox as they get posted.
Workinretail.com – Is also an ideal stop for the local seasonal jobs, I love how they categorize upfront for a focused search.
Using all three of the above job boards and the local postings in newspapers, there would be ample opportunities for part-time or full-time positions at many retailers as the holidays arrive. Get to know them first – with many workers out of job the competition would be strong. Also note that internal references might get the job faster so persistently explore on who you know and who can recommend you.
As with any other job, start preparing for interviews even before you apply for these jobs.
Good luck! What has been your experience with a seasonal job? Pls share tips with us in comments below.