Festive hiring likely to generate 2,16,000 seasonal jobs in 2025: Report

India’s festive season is set to generate over 2.16 lakh seasonal jobs in the H2 2025, marking a 15-20% YoY rise in gig and temporary employment, according to a report by Adecco India. The surge in hiring is being driven by sectors such as retail, e-commerce, banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI), logistics, hospitality, travel, and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). Companies are advancing recruitment cycles to prepare for key festivals including Raksha Bandhan, Dussehra, Diwali, and the wedding season, with the hiring momentum boosted by improved consumer sentiment, a favourable monsoon aiding rural demand, post-election optimism, and aggressive seasonal promotions. Metro cities like Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Pune continue to lead with a 19% increase in seasonal job opportunities, while tier II cities such as Lucknow, Jaipur, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, and Varanasi have seen demand rise by 42%, alongside growing traction in emerging hubs including Kanpur, Kochi, and Vijayawada.

Compensation levels are expected to rise by 12-15% in metro markets and 18-22% in emerging cities, with women’s participation in seasonal hiring increasing by 23% YoY, driven by a growing preference for flexible, short-term roles. Logistics and delivery hiring is projected to increase by 30-35% as companies ramp up last-mile operations, while the BFSI sector anticipates a 30% rise due to expanded field force deployments in credit card sales and point-of-sale installations, especially in tier II and tier III cities. The hospitality and travel segments expect a 20-25% increase, with e-commerce and retail dominating seasonal job creation, accounting for 35-40% of total hires. Employers are prioritising multilingual skills, customer handling, and digital proficiency, reflecting a shift towards structured workforce mobilisation, enhanced candidate experience, and long-term integration rather than short-term volume hiring.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.