Retailers Cutting Back On Holiday Job Opportunities

If you’re looking to pick up an extra job around the holidays to make things a little more comfortable, you might be in for some disappointing news.

Retailers around the U.S. are expected to sharply reduce the number of workers they add for the holidays, a shift from their usual seasonal hiring spree.

Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas, blames the weak demand on companies bearing heavier costs from U.S. tariffs on foreign goods, as well as rising inflation…and companies’ growing reliance on technology to improve efficiency.

The firm expects retail hiring for the holidays to fall to its lowest level since 2009, when the economy was emerging from a recession.