ANNE D’INNOCENZIO
AP Retail Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Kohl’s Corp. plans to hire more than 67,000 seasonal workers nationwide for the holiday shopping season, which the company said is a 15 percent increase over last year.
The department store operator declined to specify how many seasonal workers it hired last year other than to say it was “more than 50,000.”
This year, it expects to hire an average of 50 associates per store, up 25 percent from a year ago. Kohl’s, based in Menomonee Falls, Wis., operates 1,163 stores in 49 states. It also expects to hire 9,300 people for jobs at its distribution centers and 670 people for seasonal positions in its credit operations.
A retailer’s hiring plans can indicate its expectations for the holiday shopping season, which accounts for 20 percent of the retail industry’s annual sales, according to the National Retail Federation.
FedEx Corp. also said Wednesday it plans to increase holiday hiring. It says it anticipates hiring more than 50,000 extra workers to handle another record year for holiday season package deliveries. That’s more than double last year, when FedEx announced it would hire 20,000 seasonal workers.
UPS on Tuesday said it plans to hire up to 95,000 workers to help deliver packages during the busy holiday season — an increase from last year, when the company was caught unprepared for a surge in online shopping. The Atlanta-based company said the positions will include package sorters, loaders, delivery helpers and drivers.
UPS originally planned to hire 55,000 seasonal workers in 2013 but wound up adding 30,000 more to handle the jump in deliveries, which drove up costs and reduced profits.
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