Retailers expect fewer positions

FRESNO, Calif. -- It's not even Halloween yet, but holiday hiring has begun for many retailers, and the prospects are downright scary for stores and job seekers alike.

Retailers are gambling on the right number to hire, and a swell of job applicants are desperate for work.

Holiday sales are expected to be down 1 percent from last year. That means retailers must find the right balance: hiring enough seasonal workers but not so many that paying them eats up profits.

The Web site snagajob.com found that retailers on average plan to hire 3.1 seasonal employees this year, 16 percent less than last year, according to a survey the company hired Ipsos Public Affairs to conduct.

Challenger Gray & Christmas Inc. is more optimistic. The employment company doesn't forecast numbers but said retailers may hire more workers this year than last year simply because 2008 saw the lowest seasonal job growth in nearly 20 years.

Stores like to hire early so workers are trained and ready by Thanksgiving. Many are well into their hiring processes. Other retailers trying to keep costs down aren't hiring at all: 53 percent of managers in the snagajob.com survey said they don't plan to hire any seasonal workers.

But other retailers are forging ahead with optimism.

Sur La Table, a Seattle-based company that sells kitchen and dining products, plans to double its holiday staff by hiring more than 2,000 seasonal workers. The retailer said it is benefiting as more people are saving money by cooking at home, and they need supplies. Also, many are giving homemade goodies as gifts this year, and they are cutting back on purchases at coffee shops.

Retailers are reporting more applicants. Snagajob.com said applications in September for seasonal jobs were up 25 percent when compared with last year.

For stores, that's good thing, allowing them to pick the best workers and save on advertising. For applicants, it's depressing. But there's also good news for job seekers.

Just because an applicant hasn't heard back from a job they applied for weeks ago doesn't mean they were rejected, said John Challenger, CEO of Challenger Gray. Some retailers are collecting applications and waiting until later in the season, when they know exactly how many workers they'll need to hire.

Others say retail experience isn't always a job applicant's most important attribute.

"Experience is helpful, but not required," said Rodger Rosenberg, a RadioShack recruiting manager. He would rather have someone with strong customer-service skills and is "willing to walk up to a big, bad scary stranger when they walk into the store and say, 'How are you doing? What can I help you with?' "

Every year, seasonal jobs are a way for retailers to test potential permanent workers. With an economic rebound coming, that may happen more than this year.

This year, employers in the snagajob.com survey said they'll likely hire 51 percent of seasonal hires for permanent positions, up from 46 percent last year.