The seasonal hiring for Christmas 2024 is so far slow, but the demand for jobs over that period has risen to a six-year peak.
The hiring platform Indeed found that seasonal job postings are down by 12% compared to last year. However, searches for related jobs have increased by 24 % since 2023. The platform’s figures indicate that Christmas jobs made up 0.7% of UK searches.
It has been warned that job seekers looking to increase their income during the holiday season may find it difficult to find positions this year.
Jack Kennedy, senior economist at the Bank of England, said that employers are preparing for the busy Christmas period. However, the seasonal ramp-up is slower than in recent years. This may be due to employers being cautious in an uncertain economy.
He said that despite the fact that inflation is down, economic pressures still affect workers due to the cost of living crisis.
Kennedy said that these factors could be encouraging people to take on temporary holiday jobs to earn extra money during a time when it is usually expensive.
The competition for holiday jobs this year may be fiercer than ever before, as seasonal job postings do not match the demand from job seekers. Job seekers who are looking for seasonal employment should try to get it as soon as possible.
High-street retailers such as Card Factory, Dunelm, and Boots are the most common companies to hire for seasonal jobs this year.
Retailers of clothing, greeting cards, perfume, jewelry, homewares, cosmetics and other products, as well as retailers of food and drinks, cosmetics and other products, ranked among the top employers based on seasonal job postings.
The data revealed that, of the four years examined, and excluding the Covid-hit year 2020, 2022 had the lowest level of seasonal hiring in this part of October.
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