Hiring seasonal employees has never been easy, but the labor shortage and ongoing pandemic have made it even more challenging. Companies are competing for an increasingly small talent pool, giving job candidates plenty of options when it comes to employment. Let’s explore three hiring strategies that will help your business navigate these challenges and prepare for the months ahead with enough seasonal hires to be successful.
Your seasonal hiring strategies can’t exist in a vacuum; they need to match the latest consumer trends and habits. After another volatile year of dealing with the pandemic, consumers are still making a majority of their purchases online and preferring to pick up items quickly in-person or have them delivered. It’s time to cement your strategies for online ordering and curbside/delivery. Make sure your ordering platform runs seamlessly. Make sure your company prioritizes customer service for online touchpoints. And above all, ask yourself whether or not you have enough seasonal hires to fill curbside and/or delivery positions.
With all the competition in the labor market, companies who still use checks and cash to pay their employees will likely lose out on new hires. Cash payments have been on their way out for several years, but the pandemic accelerated their extinction. (In fact, cash usage decreased by 32% from 2019 to 2020.) Since consumers are shying away from using cash, you should switch to paying your employees digitally, too—including digital direct deposit and cashless tips or reimbursements.
If payments are coming into your business digitally, that's how you should be paying your employees, too. Otherwise payments become sluggish and inconvenient. Workers don’t want to wait two weeks to get tips or any reimbursements put onto the next paycheck. Going cashless and switching to faster digital payouts (tips included!) is a huge draw for prospective workers. Plus, switching to fast digital payments can save you time and money as issuing paper checks can be costly and making frequent trips to the bank to get change for tip payouts is an unnecessary time suck.
People have their pick of where to work these days, so overall, it pays to be a company that genuinely invests in their employees and advocates for their wellbeing. That includes prioritizing financial wellness. While many companies offer traditional financial benefits like 401(k)s or retirement plans, it’s also important to consider the perks of short-term financial benefits like earned wage access or on-demand pay for your employees. With these benefits, employees can enjoy the autonomy of accessing a portion of their total wages ahead of time, essentially creating their own payday instead of abiding by the traditional two-week pay cycle. This can also help cover unexpected expenses that employees may face before their next payday.
In today's tight labor market, it truly is a job candidate's market. Before you hire your seasonal staff for the upcoming months, it's crucial to be prepared by paying attention to consumer trends, offering faster digital payments, and investing in your employees' financial wellness. Branch can help you offer fast and free digital payments of all kinds to your workers, from cashless tips and reimbursements to earned wage access. Plus, when you work with us, there's no pre-funding or capital required—and we're completely free for both you and your employees.
Ready to learn more about how we can help you pay your employees faster?
