A Target cashier in Maine prepares to scan a huge stuffed bear (Ben McCanna/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)

The holiday job market is smaller this year, so competition is hot

Seasonal job postings are down about 8% in 2024 and are roughly flat with 2019.

Max Knoblauch

10/9/24 12:19PM

For seasonal holiday workers, Mall Santa ain’t the only game in town — but it’s looking like there are fewer other options to go around.

Major retailers have been releasing their holiday hiring goals (250,000 for Amazon, 100,000 for Target, 32,000 for Macy’s), and the overall market for seasonal work appears to be down about 8% this year — the second lowest total in the past 15 years.

Fresh data from hiring site Indeed found that seasonal job postings are roughly flat with 2019 levels and down 12% from a 2021 peak. As shoppers splurged during the pandemic, retailers hired 634,000 workers in 2020 and 602,000 in 2021, according to federal jobs data. This year, they’re expected to onboard about 520,000 new workers over the final quarter of the year — a period that typically brings in more than half of annual revenue for retailers.

For seasonal work seekers, Indeed says searches for temporary holiday jobs are up 18% from last year, meaning competition is up.

Retail is taking up a larger share of holiday jobs than it has in recent years, too (66% as of late September, up from last year’s 58%). According to Indeed, the fastest-growing seasonal role is retail sales associate, with a national average salary of $15.89 an hour — almost $10 below the average hourly rate for retail workers. Positions for seasonal tanker-truck drivers are also growing quickly, along with restaurant staff, snowplow operators, and inventory support workers.

As you might expect, Halloween costume hub Party City, which emerged from bankruptcy about a year ago, staffed up about 3x faster in September than the average for companies of the same size. Mall staples like Victoria’s Secret, Claire’s, and Macy’s were also among Indeed’s top 10 fastest-hiring retailers.

Though about 30% of shoppers say they’ll spend less this holiday season than last year, analysts expect the average shopper’s spend (between gifts, travel, and entertainment) to surpass $1,600, a 7% increase from 2023. Retailers are hoping their hiring algebra will help them score a sizable chunk of that.

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JetBlue is raising its bag fees as fuel costs squeeze airlines

JetBlue will reportedly hike its bag fees, as the cost of jet fuel continues to climb amid the war in Iran. It’s the latest example of carriers finding ways to push rising costs onto travelers.

Last week, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said that if fuel prices remain elevated, fares would need to rise another 20% for his airline to break even this year.

As CNBC reported, when one airline raises fees, others tend to follow.

Earlier this month, JetBlue hiked its first-quarter outlook for operating revenue per seat mile to between 5% and 7%, saying that strong Q1 demand helped “partially offset additional expenses realized from operational disruptions and rising fuel costs.” Now, the carrier appears to be making moves to further boost revenue to offset those costs.

Earlier on Monday, JetBlue rival Alaska Air lowered its Q1 profit forecast. The refining margins for the carrier’s cheapest fuel option — sourced from Singapore and representing about 20% of Alaska’s overall supply — have spiked 400% since February.

JetBlue did not immediately respond to a request for comment.