Target Commits $75M in Added Hours to Store Teams for Holidays

Preferred scheduling, a commitment of over $75 million for existing hourly store employees, education benefits and paid back-up training are some of the ways Target hopes to ensure holiday season store shifts are covered in a tight labor market, said the retailer Thursday.

Despite rising unemployment claims for the week ending Sept. 18, according to Labor Department figures released Thursday, the labor shortage continues to challenge local businesses, including retail. Target and Walmart are among those that have beefed up education benefits to lure and retain staffers. Target is offering current employees up to 5 million more hours in the holiday shopping season, it said.

To give employees more flexible working hours, Target developed a mobile app that members can use to choose or swap shifts that align with their schedules, said the company. The company has been evolving its store staffing model to “provide more stable hours and paychecks,” it said. As a result, hourly employees are working 15% more hours than a year ago, it said. Store managers will try to boost that percentage over the holiday season by checking in with existing employees to “understand their scheduling preferences and offer them the opportunity to work additional hours if they’re interested.”

Target will supplement the existing ranks with seasonal workers, though its goal for this year -- 100,000 hires -- is below the 130,000 it planned to hire in 2019 and 2020. “Many” of the seasonal workers will have the chance to remain with the company post-holidays, it said.

The new “work on demand” model for store workers has become popular among employees who are “full-time students, retirees, and those who want to work less frequently,” Target said. The company has been offering back-up training for employees to support in-demand areas including order pickup and drive up, where they can land an additional four to eight hours a week, it said. This year, all store employees have the option to do back-up training. Target tripled the number of store fulfillment expert roles for drive up and order pickup over the past two years, it said.

Store leaders will do pre-scheduled interviews with applicants who apply online, Target said. To further Target employees’ and applicants’ safety, the company will do virtual and prerecorded video interviews. Prospective distribution center candidates who apply online will also have a “contactless hiring experience,” it said.