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Target (TGT) Outlines Hiring Plan for Unusual Holiday Season

Target Corporation TGT is among those retailers who always put a step forward when it comes to offering consumers a seamless shopping experience. With the holiday season approaching, retailers are set to make the most of this crucial time of the year. In fact, this year, retailers have to travel the extra mile this unprecedented festive season, thanks to the coronavirus chaos. Unsurprisingly, this Minneapolis-based retailer unveiled hiring plans for the holiday period with intentions to focus more on contactless services and safety amid the pandemic. As of now, it forecasts seasonal hiring to remain on par with the prior year, which is equivalent to around 130,000 seasonal workers. The seasonal staff are likely to get a minimum starting wage of $15 with a host of key coronavirus-related health benefits.

As consumers are now leaning more toward online shopping with expedited same-day delivery, management has announced the doubling of the number of store-team members who are likely to aggressively work on Drive Up and Order Pickup. Markedly, the company aims to cater to above 90% of its digital orders, with online orders shipping directly to customers’ homes. No wonder, the company has been seeing solid demand for same-day fulfillment options. Notably, over 10 million new guests shopped from Target.com, and demand for same-day delivery quadrupled in first-half fiscal 2020. The company has also decided to bring more inventory to stores from its distribution centers to ensure smooth supply. Consequently, it will hire more full-time and seasonal warehouse staff in the country in comparison to the prior year.

Apart from driving incremental sales during the festive period, Target is equally concerned about safety and social-distancing measures. To ensure safety measures amid the pandemic, management will dedicate staff at its stores’ fronts to guide consumers, and carry out functions such as cleaning and disinfecting carts and baskets, among others.

We note that the company will offer additional working hours to its existing staff. Team members will have the choice to get training to support the additional areas of the store with higher flexibility. These members are likely to pursue training in areas including Order Pickup and Drive Up, which are in higher demand during the festive period. After catering to the company’s nearly 1,900 outlets and 43 distribution centers, management looks to meet local demands throughout the season. About 40% of the seasonal staff generally stay with the company after the season ends.

We note that supermarket giant Walmart WMT unveiled plans to deploy more than 20,000 seasonal associates at its countrywide e-commerce fulfillment centers to meet the expected surge in online shopping. Earlier this month, e-commerce behemoth Amazon AMZN announced plans to recruit as many as 100,000 full- and part-time employees to meet the surge in online demand more efficiently. Michaels Companies MIK recently announced plans to employ more than 16,000 workers for the upcoming holiday season. This art-and-craft retailer’s hiring plans are likely to solidify its BOPIS team, thereby ensuring a safe and convenient shopping experience.


Coming to Target, this Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock has appreciated 29.9% in the past three months, having outperformed the industry’s 13.1% rally. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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