BENGALURU: Over 2.16 lakh seasonal jobs will be generated during the festive season, which begins from next month. Also, hiring demand for gig and temporary employment will be up 15-20% compared to last year during H2 2025. Ecommerce giants Flipkart and Amazon have already announced their sales and with Raksha Bandhan and Dussehra around the corner, hiring in sectors such as retail, ecommerce, BFSI, logistics & hospitality is gaining momentum.
Many companies are advancing their hiring cycles to stay ahead of demand and ensure operational readiness for what is expected to be a stronger-than-usual festive period, said Adecco India. This year’s hiring uptick is being driven by improved consumer sentiment, a favourable monsoon boosting rural demand, post-election economic optimism, and aggressive seasonal promotions, it added.
Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Pune continue to lead in seasonal hiring demand—up 19% from last year. Also, tier 2 cities such as Lucknow, Jaipur, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, and Varanasi are witnessing a 42% increase in demand. Adecco finds that there has been growing traction in emerging hubs such as Kanpur, Kochi, and Vijayawada, indicating a broader geographic spread of festive hiring.
Compensation levels are also expected to rise by 12-15% in metro markets and by 18-22% in emerging cities. About 23% more women are participating in this seasonal hiring wave compared to previous years.
Deepesh Gupta, Director and Head of General Staffing, Adecco India, said, “This year’s festive season is seeing a sharper and more structured demand curve, and we have proactively prepared to meet it well in advance. Unlike previous years where hiring was largely volume-driven, employers today are equally focused on deployment speed, workforce readiness, and regional agility. We have already recorded a 19% increase in demand for seasonal roles compared to the same period last year and we are prepared to address if this grows in the coming quarters.”
Hiring in logistics and delivery is projected to rise by 30–35% as companies scale up last-mile operations in preparation for peak festive demand. In the BFSI sector, firms are significantly ramping up field force deployments for credit card sales and POS installations, particularly across tier 2 and 3 cities. The hospitality and travel segments are expected to see a 20-25% increase in hiring, e-commerce and retail will account for 35-40% of total seasonal job creation.
HR solutions provider Adecco India also said that candidates being onboarded for festive roles are typically aged between 18 and 30 years, with qualifications ranging from high school to undergraduate degrees. A large portion of this workforce includes first-time jobseekers or those with prior gig experience.
“What’s also evident is a growing trend of festive roles acting as formal entry points for youth and gig workers,” said Gupta. Adecco India said it is prepared to deploy 8,000–10,000 seasonal hires between July and December 2025, with a significant share of this demand emerging from tier 2 and 3 cities.