US market for seasonal work at its most favourable since 2007

Atlanta

WANDA Tucker was hired on the spot for a part-time job with Gap Inc's Banana Republic chain earlier this month after searching for a full-time position since April.

"I thought I was just going in for an interview," said Ms Tucker, 53, of Rex, Georgia, who had finished five years of Army Reserves postings before entering the workforce. "It has been a blessing to have some money coming into the household."

Workers are facing the most favourable job market for seasonal work since the 18-month recession that started in December 2007, getting hired with fewer interviews and in some cases with higher pay.

About 821,000 workers will be hired for retail seasonal jobs this year, up 11 per cent from a year ago and the highest since records were started in 1990, estimated Michael Niemira, former director of research for the International Council of Shopping Centers Inc and now founder of economic forecasting firm The Retail Economist LLC in Tucson, Arizona.

Big retailers Walmart Stores Inc, Target Corp, Kohl's Corp, JC Penney Co and Amazon.com Inc will hire 304,000 compared with 283,000 last year, he said.

The estimate does not include United Parcel Service Inc in Atlanta, which has said that it will add as many as 95,000 temporary workers; and caterers, who are expecting an increase in holiday parties.

"I don't want to say there is pressure on wages but there is an alignment of wages with demand," said Jack Kleinhenz, chief economist with the National Retail Federation in Washington, who is estimating that as many as 800,000 workers will be added. "There is some tightening" in the job market.

The unemployment rate for the retail and wholesale trade sector fell to 5.1 per cent in October, the lowest since early 2008 in the initial months of the recession, Labor Department figures show. Wages and salaries for retail workers rose 2.5 per cent in the third quarter from the same period in 2013, the biggest increase in more than four years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Seasonal job seekers using the website Snagajob.com are finding work in an average of 28 days this year compared with 45 days last year, company chief executive officer Peter Harrison said. The Richmond, Virginia-based online matching service focuses on part-time and hourly positions. "There is a lot more activity by employers," he said. "Clearly, there is a very strong trend."

The retail federation is projecting holiday sales to rise 4.1 per cent this year, more than last year's 3.1 per cent gain, as rising employment, improved consumer confidence and lower petrol prices lead to more buying. Sales in November and December can account for as much as 30 per cent of a retailer's annual revenue.

Consumer confidence rose in November to the highest level in seven years, according to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary sentiment index on Nov 14. A separate report by the Conference Board on Tuesday showed an unexpected decline from October, which was a seven-year high, while a gauge of consumers' willingness to buy appliances rose to its highest level since at least 2010 and purchase intentions for televisions were at a two-year high.

Retail sales rebounded in October. Purchases rose 0.3 per cent as 11 of 13 major categories showed gains, indicating broad-based growth, figures from the Commerce Department showed.

"It's the most wonderful time of the year for retailers' sales at year-end, so it is literally all hands on deck as they try to hire sales help," said Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd in New York. "Even if you have been out of work for two years, if you have a pulse, stores need you."

UPS expects to deliver 585 million packages in December, or the equivalent of 1.9 packages for every person in the country. The company peaked at 31 million packages delivered in a single day last holiday season. This year, it expects six days to surpass that single-day figure.

The hiring of couriers and delivery people in October bodes well for retail hiring later in the season because it suggests confidence in the sales outlook, said Joseph LaVorgna, chief US economist of Deutsche Bank Securities Inc in New York.

"The consumer has enjoyed a decent year of real disposable income growth" and effectively has "a nice tax cut from energy", he said.

Restaurants are benefiting from a better consumer mood as well. Forty-four per cent of small-business owners plan to throw a holiday party this year, compared with 32 per cent last year, according to a survey by American Express Co. BLOOMBERG