Christmas Temporary Workers
From students to retirees, Christmas has always been a time when extra work opportunities has provided valuable income. This year is no exception – what is different is the fact that demand from prospective employers and employees is rising faster than ever before.
Although Christmas job postings don’t normally reach a peak until November, recent data indicates that the peak is set to be much higher than anyone might expect.
Research on September job descriptions undertaken by the job platform, Indeed Flex revealed that the number of jobs containing the word ‘Christmas’ was 244% higher than in September 2021.
“The run-up to Christmas always sees an explosion in temporary job numbers, but this year’s seasonal surge in hiring has started earlier and faster than usual. Millions of Britons are already looking for, or intend to look for, a temporary job to top up income,” commented Novo Constare, CEO and Co-founder of Indeed Flex.
Employers are clearly recruiting early, and people are searching for Christmas jobs much earlier than usual.
The survey by Indeed Flex makes interesting reading. Over 26% of adults questioned for the survey were already looking for a Christmas job, or were about to do so. An additional 36% of respondents were seriously thinking about looking for Christmas work. Nigh on a third of people taking part in the survey had never done Christmas work before – but were now planning to do so. It also highlighted the fact that many of these people were already employed either full or part time, and were now seeking additional work.
Stuart Lewis, chief executive of Rest Less, a digital community for over-50’s has pointed out that “increasing numbers of retirees are feeling poorer than they’ve felt before, with consumer confidence at a record low and purchasing power eroded on a monthly basis.”
Retirees are forming an important element in these Christmas employees. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) research has highlighted that recent months have seen a massive increase in the number of over-50’s returning to work. Many of these are aged 65 and over. ONS figures indicate that more than 66,000 males aged 65 and over have obtained jobs, and over 37,000 women in the same age group are currently seeking employment opportunities.
Finding reasons for this rise in demand for temporary employment are not difficult. With inflation now at around 10%, the constantly rising cost of living, worries about fuel prices as well as a desire to have something to enjoy at Christmas, extra work has become a priority.
Such demand for work is good news for employers since most companies have realised that existing staff numbers are far below what they will need in order to cope with Black Friday and Christmas demand.
The range of jobs being offered is wide ranging, covering everything from hospitality to retail, promotions and sampling to warehouses and delivery. And of course, there is the need for people to staff the most important of all seasonal jobs – Santa and elves.
The message is clear. Businesses planning to recruit Christmas staff are going to have to think fast and employ people for much longer than many anticipated. Experienced Christmas staff, people who are used to dealing with high demand and seasonal requests are going to be hired quickly, leaving companies with a need to undertake greater training in order to employ less qualified personnel. Although the numbers of job hunters is rising fast, the reality is that employers will have to work fast to get the staff they want. It also puts prospective staff in a good position, since they are facing a wider choice of work opportunities, which could potentially lead to new long term prospects.
Clearly, for both employers and employees – Christmas has come early!
Do you need to hire temporary staff for the Christmas period?
If the answer in yes then give us a call or pop us an email to discuss what you need.