Christmas and seasonal job postings in Ireland have surged compared to last year according to new data published by Indeed.com, the world’s largest jobs site. Year to date the number of seasonal job postings is up 11% compared to 2017.

There is a surge in postings for Christmas related roles in the early Autumn, as businesses prepare for the busy festive period. The seasonal roles advertised to date are predominantly customer-facing sales jobs in the retail sector (73%).

Other big seasonal roles help ensure that retailers do not run out of stock, with hiring focused on stocking, merchandising, driving and warehouse work. 
 
The hospitality sector appears to be better able to cover for Christmas with its existing staff, as restaurant, bar and catering roles represent only 2% of seasonal job postings to date. Jobs that required the successful candidate to dress up as Santa, Mrs Claus or an elf accounted for 4% of the postings. 
 
Commenting on the figures, Economist at global job site Indeed, Pawel Adrjan said, "Whilst shoppers can leave their Christmas preparations until later in the year, our data shows employers began ramping up their seasonal workforce in early Autumn. This year, however, Christmas jobs postings on Indeed in Ireland soared earlier and faster than in 2017."

He added, "This is likely to be boosted by other seasonal retail events such as Black Friday, which happens in November. Demand for seasonal employment is increasing against a backdrop of record low unemployment, which makes it harder for businesses to find employees for temporary roles."

Source: www.businessworld.ie