Kroger Is Emphasizing Long-Term Employment During Holiday Hiring

As the holidays grow closer, many people are looking forward to decorating Christmas trees and feasting on homemade dinners. However, for businesses, the most wonderful time of the year is also the most hectic. In fact, according to Statista, in 2021 retailers were projected to rake in over $843.4 billion in holiday sales alone. And to help brace for the holiday hustle, employers often look to hire temporary help.

But 2022, in particular, is shaping up to be a big year for seasonal employment. According to the National Retail Federation, businesses may hire up to 665,000 seasonal workers this holiday season — which is a 179,000 increase from 2020. Oftentimes these seasonal workers will stop working for stores almost as quickly as they start, but grocery giant Kroger is more focused on bringing new hires into the fold during the Christmas season that will stay employed long after New Year (per a company press release).

Kroger is championing permanent holiday hires

Kroger announced on its website that it is now officially hiring new employees for more than just the upcoming holiday rush. "We are seeking to hire new associates, not just for the season but to join the Kroger Family of Companies and embark on a career," Tim Massa, Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer at Kroger, said in the press release.

Aside from emphasizing that it wanted all of the new hires to feel like they were starting a meaningful career, Kroger was also sure to highlight that every full-time associate will be granted full benefits. This was particularly important to note given that, as reported by TriNet, seasonal workers, no matter their hours, are usually not able to take advantage of the same benefits as their long-term employee peers.

Kroger's move to highlight its dedication to long-term employment may prove to help with its employee retention in the future. The press release boasted that the company has invested $1.2 billion in employee compensation and raised the hourly wage to $22/hour. However, according to Retail Dive, a few other retailers in the seasonal hiring game, such as Macy's and Michaels, have also stated they will give some seasonal employees the option to continue working with their companies when the holidays end. Only time will tell if other big holiday shopping names like Walmart will follow suit.