What is seasonal work?
To put it simply, seasonal work has an end-date whereas full-time work is permanent. Seasonal staff are part-time or temporary workers that are hired to fulfil a business demand for a specific period. Seasonal workers do not work more than 6 months of the year. They are typically delivery drivers, warehouse workers, picker packer, or customer service advisor. Seasonal work is popular prior to or during the holidays as there tends to be an increased customer demand. They constitute an essential part of the workforce to ensure the business fulfils its customers’ demand.
Related: Seasonal Associate Interview Questions
The benefits of hiring seasonal workers
There are many advantages to hiring seasonal staff. For some businesses this is a must that cannot be avoided due to peak seasons. For others, it is more planned and part of a wider growth strategy. Here are some key benefits of hiring seasonal staff:
- Meeting peak demand through additional staff when workload is high,
- Ensuring cost effectiveness as employers only pay the extra help without committing to long term contracts,
- Testing potential employees through a form of trial period,
- Reducing onboarding time with returning seasonal workers ,
- Enhancing customer experience by ensuring efficient customer service during busy times,
- Boosting employees’ morale by ensuring workloads are shared,
- Ensuring long-term planning through the insight gained from seasonal hiring.
Seasonal hiring is a way to keep customers happy and sales flowing. For businesses, temporary staff and agency workers are the support that keeps things running when demand soars.
Related: How to Hire Seasonal Employees
Why is it so hard to retain seasonal staff?
In today’s labour context, the demand for skilled workers is at its highest. Organisations that depend on seasonal staff face a multitude of challenges that need to be overcome. Here are some of those common hurdles:
- High competition for talent: When recruiting seasonal workers, companies compete with each other. Additionally, they also compete with the gig economy, thus adding another layer of challenge.
- Lack of loyalty: The variety of job opportunities in hospitality, agriculture, and retail means that there is little loyalty from seasonal workers. Businesses need to find ways to increase engagement.
- Decreased job security: Seasonal positions can be great opportunities. However, they typically do not provide workers with health insurance, pensions, or paid time off. These benefits are important to workers as they bring job security. Omitting them may lead to low retention.
- Non-existent employee engagement: The nature of seasonal work, with temporary periods of employment, means that it is associated with low engagement. Seasonal workers rarely feel connected to the business they work for. This lack of engagement has a direct impact on motivation and needs to be addressed.
Related: How to develop employee engagement and motivation in the workplace
- Absence of development opportunities: Often, seasonal workers are hired to fulfil short-term goals. As such, there is typically little investment associated with seasonal workers’ training and development. Overcoming this barrier and investing in seasonal workers growth may have a positive impact on the return rates season after season.
Related: 5 Steps to creating an effective training and development programme
- Workers’ changing expectations: With newer generations joining the workforce, expectations are changing. The labour market is expecting more than a pay check and seeks purpose, flexibility and development opportunities. Adapting to those changing needs is essential to ensure seasonal workers are motivated to come back.
9 strategies for retaining and engaging seasonal workers
It can be quite difficult to keep seasonal employees, but it is essential for businesses looking to keep up during peak times. The strategies and tips outlined below will help organisations keep their seasonal staff engaged, loyal, and ready to return year after year.
Implement a smooth onboarding process
Use technologies such as online platforms and virtual communication tools to create a smooth onboarding process. Having an effective onboarding process ensures that seasonal staff feel prepared, informed, and included in the organisation.
Related: The Impact of Onboarding on Employee Experience and Retention
Offer training and development opportunities
When hiring seasonal workers, training and development might not be top priorities that come to mind. However, by providing training opportunities to seasonal staff the organisation demonstrates that they care about their workers’ enhancing their skills and that growth is important. It asserts a positive company culture that prioritises its people.
Related: Learning and development: Needs assessment
Build relationship and connect with seasonal staff
Provide a friendly atmosphere that makes seasonal employees feel integrated into your permanent teams. Make sure you create a culture that encourages diversity and inclusion. Be welcoming from the moment they join your organisation to motivate them to come back. Staying engaged all year also builds a long-lasting connection.
Related: Create, cultivate and increase employee connection
Stay connected during the off-peak seasons
Staying connected with seasonal workers during off-peak season might seem like an additional effort not worth the while. It isn’t. On the contrary, by engaging all year round with seasonal staff, organisations create a link that keeps the connection and increases the likelihood of seasonal staff returning. Use newsletters and social media platforms to stay in touch.
Implement appealing return incentives
Naturally, financial incentives, such as bonuses or higher wages, may encourage workers to return. Despite the immediate cost, this solution should be considered. In the long-run it may be more cost-effective to offer incentives than to recruit new staff each season.
Related: Ideas for employee incentives
Make returning easy and quick
New employees’ recruitment often generates high administrative workload. It is of value to establish easy and efficient processes for re-employment. Automating the recruitment and overall HR systems is recommended. For example, implementing digital right-to-work checks will significantly accelerate the process. With automation, both employers and returning staff save time and hassle.
Be selective from the get-go
Stricter scrutiny of applicants will help select candidates who are more likely to return. The better the hiring, the more likely it is to retain quality seasonal staff over a longer period. When recruiting seasonal workers, ask your recruiting teams to be selective and to consider the candidates likelihood to return. This might seem like an additional step but will pay off in the long run.
Related: How to Find Good Employees
Give meaningful work experiences
Employees engagement is essential no matter their types of employment contract. Seasonal workers should feel like they are part of a wider group and that they make a difference. Workers are much more likely to return when they feel their work is creating meaningful value.
Related: What is employee experience management?
Consider seasonal workers for permanent roles
Seasonal workers can be a great source of talent pool. Look into seasonal staff and identify individuals who might be a good fit for your organisation for permanent roles. Those who show potential should be given the opportunity for full-time jobs. This will help with better employee retention and will increase your employees’ loyalty.
When it comes to retaining seasonal workers, it is essential to understand your end-goal from the get-go. Sourcing the right candidates will have an impact on the returning rate. Actions during their period of employment and afterwards are also essential to increase the retention rate. Investing in seasonal workers return has long term positive consequences for your organisations and should not be overlooked.
