Holiday job competition is stiff

Holiday job prospects are a bit brighter this year, providing some relief after employers more than halved the number of seasonal workers in 2008.

But while there is some reason for optimism, competition for openings is stiff, and many employers started hiring for the holidays in October, leaving few remaining slots.

In the Augusta metro area, retail jobs rose by 3.4 percent, or 800 jobs, between September and October of this year, according to the latest data from the Georgia Department of Labor.

One of those jobs went to Danica Deal, a 23-year-old pre-pharmacy student at Augusta State University. She said she applied to several places, including Walmart and CVS, before being hired as a cashier at the Kmart in Martinez.

"It's hard to find any job," said Miss Deal, who also works part time for the Department of Family and Children Services. "I was excited because I wanted a part-time job just for the Christmas season."

The store's manager, James Klugh, said he added about 20 workers to a normal staff of 100. He said he made that decision because of good early sales numbers that he attributed to layaway and the store's value pricing.

"We haven't been affected as much by the recession. We're operating above last year's sales," he said. "We've hired just as many if not more in preparation for our holiday season."

Jim Crowe, the store manager at the Men's Wearhouse in Augusta, said he added two staff members within the past 60 days -- and the jobs are permanent positions. He said the store usually has between 10 and 13 employees.

"We felt that business justified having additional people," he said. "Business has been going well. We anticipate a robust Christmas. We feel that the climate is good for a store that has the right merchandise."

Nationally, a survey of 100 of the top U.S. retailers by Aon Consulting found that 37 percent planned to hire the same number of employees for the holidays and that 19 percent planned to hire more.

Those numbers come amid a forecast by the National Retail Federation that holiday sales will decline by 1 percent this year.

UPS, based in Atlanta, is predicting it will deliver about 400 million packages between Thanksgiving and Christmas, a slight increase from last year, spokeswoman Rebecca Treacy-Lenda said.

That will translate into about 60 more drivers in Augusta for the holidays and about 1,300 more seasonal workers throughout Georgia, she said.

Kim Logan, 47, a graduate of Augusta Technical College who started working last week at Kmart as a cashier, said she is just happy to have a job.

"I'm happy because it's something," she said. "It's not exactly what I'm looking for, but it helps."

Reach Erin Zureick at (706) 823-3217 or erin.zureick@augustachronicle.com.