While people were trying to squeeze in one last summer trip before the school year kicked off, Bill Watson was preparing for cold weather and holiday shopping.

“Most employers are getting ready for seasonal hiring in September,” said Watson, business services contact for WorkSource Columbia Basin. “They like to get people in for training before the holiday shopping season starts.”

Holiday hiring to be up

This year, employers will need to train even more people as holiday sales are expected to be higher than last year’s. Washington retailers are poised to hire more than 12,700 seasonal workers this year—up more than 2,000 from last year, according to the state Employment Security Department.

Benton and Franklin counties account for 467 of those seasonal jobs. Last year, businesses in the two counties hired 420 people.

“Seasonal retail hiring across the state is expected to rebound this year after declining the past two years,” said Paul Turek, an economist with the department, in a news release. “Healthier wage growth amidst an improving employment situation should help raise holiday sales to a level that boosts hiring.”

To help companies connect with job seekers, WorkSource Columbia Basin held a job fair in October. Watson said 300 job seekers attended the event along with 38 employers, including Dollar Tree, Amazon and Target.

“Target was looking for 30 people. Amazon is looking for more than 150 in the Tri-Cities,” said Watson, adding that there were also companies interested in hiring full-time positions, such as Areva and Meier Architecture & Engineering.

Hiring in general is up in the Tri-Cities. Unemployment in Benton County is 5.9 percent and is 5.8 percent in Franklin County—the lowest of the year so far, according to WorkSource Columbia Basin.

Watson said those numbers can be credited to expanded retail opportunities, such as the new HomeGoods store at Columbia Center mall in Kennewick and the Ross Dress for Less that recently opened in Richland’s Queensgate area. While both stores indicate positive economic growth, it’s not just the retail industry that’s hiring.

“There’s also a large number of production facilities coming in. ConAgra is expanding, and Volm is building larger operations. The economic outlook is better this year than in previous years, and that gives people a lot better feeling about spending for the holidays,” Watson said.

Economists with the state’s Employment Security Department report the bulk of seasonal hiring will be in general merchandise stores. Clothing and clothing-accessory stores are projected to hire about a quarter of the total seasonal jobs expected in the state.

The economic outlook is good news for Hugo Trejo, co-owner of the recently opened Twisted Clothing in Pasco. He and his wife, Claudia, are looking forward to the holiday shopping season.

“We have lived most of our lives here and wanted to provide the community with fashionable clothing at a great unbeatable price,” he said. “Most everything we carry is under $25. Some of the brand names we carry include Under Armour, Abercrombie and DC, to name a few.”

Uptick predicted

The National Retail Federation expects holiday sales—excluding autos, gas and restaurants—to increase 3.6 percent to $655.8 billion. That increase is more than a percent higher than the 10-year average of 2.5 percent and above the seven-year average of 3.4 percent since the economic recovery began in 2009.

“All of the fundamentals are in a good place, giving strength to consumers and leading us to believe that this will be a very positive holiday season,” said Matthew Shay, the federation’s president and CEO, in a statement.

And for those seeking employment, events such as the fall job fair are a great way to connect with employers face-to-face, Watson said.

“You can ask the employer what kind of training and experience you might need for a specific position, and you might be surprised to find out there are other positions being offered there,” he said. “There’s a lot of things you can talk about (with employers) to build up your ammunition to be more successful.”

Resources for job seekers

Job seekers who missed the October job fair event are not entirely out of luck, especially since not all companies hiring right now are seeking seasonal workers. To find out which businesses are still hiring temporary positions and what companies might have more long-term employment opportunities available, WorkSource Columbia Basin rolled out a new website in May, worksourcewa.com.

Potential employees can find up-to-date information on jobs tailored to their skill set, degree and location.

“The state of Washington contracted with Monster to create this new website that has more features than our previous site. Once job seekers register, there’s more information on the ability to look for jobs, and there’s an easier resumé builder on this system,” said Watson, who notes the website is also great for employers. “For example, once the employers get the job posted, they can rank the resumés they receive.”

For those in need of assistance tailoring their resumé or want help preparing for an interview, WorkSource Columbia Basin offers monthly workshops.

Classes can be found under the Career Tools tab on its website.

Nearly 3,000 people visit WorkSource Columbia Basin monthly, said Watson. The office at 815 N. Kellogg St. in Kennewick, is where the job fair took place and in March, the agency plans to host a spring job fair.

“We do get quite a few inquiries about our next job fair, even from employers,” he said. “Spring is good because you’ve got a lot of agriculture kicking in, and it potentially affects the entire economy.”

Home improvement businesses also see an uptick in growth in the spring, he added, and are expected to hire more workers to meet the demand.

Watson expects a similar number of employers to attend the spring job fair but hopes to have about 400 job seekers come out. An exact date has not yet been set. Information will be posted on the WorkSource Columbia Basin website as details are secured.