Every week we comb through the news to find employment trends affecting the hospitality industry so you don’t have to. This week’s topic: holiday hiring in 2019.
Holiday Hiring in 2019
It’s the most understaffed time of the year
One of the biggest challenges facing hospitality and foodservice is seasonal hiring. Finding the perfect formula for staffing those busier times of year can be difficult because of the high demand. While there are several seasons that affect staffing, such as summer and back-to-school, the winter holidays typically have the biggest need for additional help.
In 2018, retailers brought on over 600,000 workers between November and January alone. A recent report predicts holiday sales may see a 5% increase this year, with companies such as Macy’s, Kohl’s, and Target planning to hire between 80,000 and 130,000 seasonal employees each. Retail is not the only industry affected by the holidays — restaurants across the country, especially in major cities or around big shopping areas will see an increase in traffic.
Hiring employees solely for the holidays comes with its own set of challenges. On average it costs around $4,000 to fully hire a candidate, can take several weeks and requires additional manpower for training. Additionally, with unemployment at a 50-year low, finding available talent (let alone hiring them) can be difficult.
One option for easier holiday staffing is by working with a third party. Staffing companies like LGC offer on-demand labor perfect for combating seasonality. With one of our solutions, LGC Now, clients don’t have to worry about the costs or time it takes to hire a new team and can request workers on a more last-minute basis. Through our mobile platform, workers choose their schedule based on their availability; this helps broadens our talent pool by not limiting them to a certain schedule.
With November acting as the unofficial start of the holiday season, restaurants and retailers should be finalizing their plan for tackling hectic holiday staffing. Contact us to learn more about LGC Now’s platform and how it can help you access professional, seasonal talent right when you need it.