Holiday Hiring: Amazon Adds Jobs, UPS Cuts Back

The holiday hiring season has arrived with conflicting data from major employers. While some companies are expanding their workforce, others are scaling back, leaving economists to parse a mixed set of signals from the 2026 labor market.

Amazon issued a press release on Oct. 20 stating it plans to employ more than 300,000 full-time, part-time, and seasonal workers for the peak shopping period. This represents a 20% increase from the company's 2025 pledge of 250,000 holiday jobs. UPS took a different approach. The shipping company announced on Oct. 7 that it would hire 100,000 seasonal employees in 2026, a figure down nearly 10% from its 2025 target.

Andy Challenger, chief revenue officer at Challenger, Gray & Christmas, told CNBC Make It that he does not expect an explosive hiring year similar to 2021 and 2022. However, he noted that Amazon's announcement provides reason to be slightly more positive than previously thought. Challenger also observed that exporting goods has decreased slightly.

Data from Indeed Hiring Lab indicates that seasonal job postings as of Sept. 30, 2026, surpassed 2025 levels. The report, released on Oct. 15, found that seasonal hiring is up 10% from 2025. Laura Ullrich, director of economic research at Indeed, explained that non-retail jobs are driving this growth. The five most in-demand non-retail titles include customer service representative, unloader, delivery driver, photographer, and stocker.

Retailers are adjusting their workforce structures in response to e-commerce trends. The share of Americans who shop online has risen to 87%, according to Statista Research Department data. Indeed researchers note that loading and stocking roles now represent 9% of all holiday job listings, up from 3.5% in 2019. Ullrich stated that retailers are posting more permanent part-time jobs in place of seasonal roles. Non-seasonal, part-time roles accounted for 49% of the holiday retail job market in September 2026, up from 38% in September 2025.

Individual companies are adopting varied strategies. Spirit Halloween said on June 11 that it would hire 52,000 employees. Michaels plans to onboard over 10,000 workers for the holidays. Target did not announce specific headcounts but stated on its website that it would lean on its existing workforce before seeking seasonal hires. Bain & Company projects U.S. holiday retail sales will reach $1 trillion in 2026.

Job seekers are also adapting to the changing landscape. Desktop searches for seasonal and holiday terms are up 28% in 2026 compared to 2025 data on Indeed. An Indeed report from June 9 found that 16% of active job seekers already hold multiple jobs. Workers in food preparation roles make up the largest share, at 17%, of those seeking additional employment.