With the whole country wondering where Target Canada’s 17,600 workers will go once all the stores are closed, Home Depot has some good news: It’s going on a hiring spree in Canada this spring and adding 5,500 "associates" to its payroll.
But wait, it’s not all good news: For one thing, these are seasonal jobs meant to get the home-reno retailer through the busy spring season, so no guarantee of a permanent job. Still, the company says about half its seasonal workers end up staying with the company.
Also, this year’s hiring spree is a little smaller than last year’s when Home Depot hired 6,300 in Canada for the spring season.
The retailer will hold 370 job events across the country, to hire for all 181 Canadian locations. More information can be found at Home Depot’s job page.
The Associated Press reports:
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Home Depot Inc. says it has started to hire thousands of seasonal workers for its U.S. and Canadian stores during the spring selling season, the busiest time of the year for home improvement retailers.
In the United States, the company will hire more than 80,000 seasonal workers — about the same as last year.
Home Depot Canada, by contrast, has announced it will hire 5,500 people for operational and sales positions this spring — down from 6,300 associates it was looking for a year ago.
A Home Depot spokesman told The Associated Press that the hiring levels aren't an indication of the business environment or what the company sees for the spring season, but more about its needs.
Tim Crow, executive vice-president of human resources for the Atlanta-based company, also said more than half of Home Depot's spring seasonal workers stay on with the company.
"It gives us the ability to get a whole new wave of folks to join our team," Crow said.
For most retailers, the holiday shopping season, which spans November to December, is their busiest season. But for Home Depot and its rivals, the biggest sales comes in the spring as shoppers spruce up their lawns and work on their homes.
The hiring comes as the Atlanta-based company is moving beyond a huge data breach last fall that affected 56 million credit and debit cards — mostly in the United States.
This year, its Canadian stores may feel the impact of a big drop in oil prices that is expected to hurt economies in oil-producing provinces but help other areas of the country where consumers are spending less on gas.
Home Depot (NYSE:HD) is expected to report fourth-quarter results Feb. 24.
— with a file from The Canadian Press
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