Bright Christmas
Target to add 100,000 seasonal jobs
Who said Amazon was a jobs killer?
Target, trying to compete with the e-commerce behemoth, will increase its seasonal workforce by 43 percent this year — with many of the added workers set to toil off the sales floor boxing and shipping online orders.
The cheap chic retailer on Wednesday said it will hire 100,000 seasonal workers this year.
For the past four years the Minneapolis-based chain has brought in 70,000 temporary workers to help with the holiday crush at its 1,816 stores.
Target, like other brickand-mortar chains, is amping up its online presence — both in direct shipping or allowing customers to order online and pick up at the store.
To cut down on delivery time — and in some instances to offer same-day service — Target will not ship from one of its 38 regional warehouses but from a local store.
That means the added workers will be assigned to the stores themselves.
“The team members at the back of the stores are fulfilling online orders, and we have more of those roles than last year,” said a Target spokeswoman.
“What’s new this year is that are digital capabilities are growing.”
Last month, Target reported a strong second quarter, with online sales up 32 percent from the yearearlier period.
About 1,200 of Target’s stores have the ability to ship merchandise to customers’ homes.
Target is among the first major retailers to announce its holiday hiring plans and it’s unclear whether others, including Walmart, will follow suit.
Seasonal retail hiring has been declining for the past couple of years, according to John Challenger, chief executive of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a recruiter.
Seasonal employment increased by 641,000 during the final three months of 2016, the lowest number since 2009, when 495,800 people were added, according to Challenger.