Seasonal jobs down by a third, but 10,000 positions still available

Despite lockdown 2.0 and a wider hiring slowdown, there are currently over 13,600 temporary Christmas jobs unfilled in the UK. The number of seasonal jobs is down by about a third year-on-year, but there are still plenty of festive vacancies being advertised around Britain.

Topping the list of companies still looking for seasonal staff are parcel courier company Yodel (1,647 jobs), Royal Mail (1,524 jobs) and online tutoring platform Tutorful (1,032 jobs). Hermes (353 jobs) and Tesco (341 jobs) are also advertising for hundreds of open Christmas roles. In total, Royal Mail will be hiring 33,000 seasonal workers, while Tesco is bringing in 11,000 workers, though many of these roles have now been filled.

With much of 2020 Christmas shopping expected to be online creating the need for more delivery drivers and warehouse pickers, there are plenty of Logistics & Warehouse roles still on offer this year: with 5,476 roles available accounting for 40% of open positions (compared to just 20% of roles two years ago).

Retail, normally the stalwart sector for Christmas jobs, accounts for just 6% of open roles this year (767 jobs) compared to 17% two years ago. Similarly, Sales roles account for just 461 seasonal roles this Christmas (just 3%, down from 8% two years ago).

However, jobseekers looking for temporary work this winter shouldn’t be disheartened, Christmas-related roles are available for those willing to think outside-the-box. Covid-19 has created a need for more deep cleaning within retailers, with vacancies on offer for ‘Shop Deep Cleaners’ paying up to £9.30 per hour. Similarly, with many workers leaving the city and working remotely, there is a need for Concierges at some of the biggest offices and luxury residential blocks, with London-based company Claibon Property Services paying up to £17.44 for concierges willing to work over the Christmas period.

Outdoor retail environments are another good option. Garden centres including Dobbies continue to hire for Santas and Festive Elves, while Christmas Tree Patches including at Queen Elizabeth Country Park are looking for Sales Assistants to help them sell stock in the run-up to the holidays.

There also remains an acute need for care workers over the Christmas period with many seasonal jobs available in this area, including 528 seasonal Healthcare & Nursing roles and 470 seasonal Social Care positions (paying up to £10.25 an hour).

So don’t lose hope! If you’re on the lookout for a Christmas jobs, plenty of firms are still hiring – might just need to be prepared to put the Santa costume away this year and consider a warehouse, healthcare or logistics job instead!

The complete list of 10,000+ U.K Christmas jobs can be found here

Table 1: Top Christmas Employers Hiring Now

Table 2: Top 5 Sectors for Seasonal Jobs this Christmas

Table 3: Festive Roles and what they Pay