Marks & Spencer (M&S) has unveiled plans to recruit 11,000 seasonal employees to support its stores during the Christmas trading period.

The retailer has opened applications for the temporary roles, with successful candidates due to start from 25 October. Staff will support store teams during one of the busiest times of the year, helping serve customers and maintain operations across food, clothing and gifting.

The roles will pay £13.41 an hour and M&S said new recruits will receive training and support to help them settle into the business quickly.

M&S added seasonal staff will play an important role in helping stores manage higher customer demand in the run-up to Christmas, as millions of shoppers visit its stores for festive food, gifts and clothing.

Thinus Keeve, retail director at M&S, said: "Our brilliant store colleagues play such an important part in delivering the magic of M&S at Christmas, and we're looking forward to welcoming 11,000 new colleagues to teams this year.

“Christmas is busy, fast-moving and a really exciting time to join M&S. We'll give new colleagues the training, tools and support they need to get up to speed quickly. What matters most is bringing energy, curiosity and a real commitment to doing the right thing for our customers and working as part of the team.”

Other major retailers are also growing their staff ahead of the festive period. Last month, the John Lewis Partnership announced plans to hire 10,400 seasonal workers ahead of the festive period.

Over half of the new vacancies will be at Waitrose, with 6,000 roles created for the supermarket’s 320 branches, with a further 2,600 at John Lewis stores and 1,800 across the Partnership’s supply chain and distribution centres.

In September Currys announced it is recruiting around 1,000 seasonal workers for its 296 stores across the UK and Ireland ahead of the Christmas trading period.
The technology retailer said 49 per cent of seasonal employees hired during last year's peak trading period were offered permanent positions after their contracts ended, illustrating how temporary festive roles can lead to long-term careers within the business.

---