Will Christmas be cancelled for retailers?

Why employers need to rethink seasonal worker payroll

The retail sector could be at risk unless employers adopt Earned Wage Access (EWA) – or Pay-on-Demand – to ensure seasonal staff are paid before Christmas. That’s according to experts in pay and payroll processes, CloudPay.

The leading global payroll provider has highlighted data from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) which shows a marked increase in hiring in the latter weeks of October which would normally occur earlier in the year to support Christmas plans. This suggests that firms have delayed seasonal hiring this year as economic uncertainty prevails.

CloudPay warns that with a shorter time frame to recruit key seasonal workers and often rigid payroll processes in place, adopting EWA – which allows workers to access accrued earnings as and when they need – could be the saving grace for retail this year.

Borja Perez, VP Product, Payments at CloudPay, commented:
“The majority of seasonal workers take on these roles to cover the added costs that Christmas creates, however as we have historically seen, they are often not paid before the break which defeats the purpose of taking the position. However, with many of these employers yet to start their seasonal hiring as a result of wider uncertainties, it’s unlikely that they will be able to pay staff before the end of December unless EWA models are adopted.

“EWA not only allows workers to access their earnings as and when they need them, but it also makes it considerably easier for employers to recruit the skills they need to handle the increased seasonal workload.”



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