Lord Wolfson | Does Next's CEO really have the answer to your talent woes?

With the festive period slowly yet surely inching towards us, many of the UK’s largest hospitality and retail firms are once again searching for a fleet of seasonal staff. This temporary army of workers will bolster teams around the nation and see them through what will likely be the most profitable, and busy, point in the year.

And whilst economic instability will undoubtedly have an impact on profitability throughout Christmas ’22, it seems that – at least according to the latest data from Adzuna – seasonal workers have never been more in-demand. The firm’s research found that over 25,000 festive positions are available currently.

Jobs ads may be abundant, yet there simply aren’t currently enough workers to fill them. UK-based searches for seasonal Christmas jobs are down by 27%, when compared to 2019 results, and 33% below 2018.

For some, such as Next boss Lord Wolfson, the absence of willing workers to fill empty roles is only compounding the company’s struggle to build back its already depleted staff base. Somewhat surprisingly, considering Wolfson was a staunch advocate of Brexit, it’s the UK’s exit from the EU that he blames.