5 On Your Side

'Be patient': Labor shortage could cause shipping delays, higher prices this holiday season

Shortages and shipping delays means you need to start your holiday shopping now.

Posted Updated

By
Monica Laliberte
, WRAL's 5 On Your Side executive producer/reporter
RALEIGH, N.C. — Shortages and shipping delays means you need to start your holiday shopping now.

A major reason why shoppers need to start early this year is because of a job shortage. Retailers likely will not be able to fill all of those seasonal jobs necessary to meet shopper needs.

"They will fall short. Everyone will," said Craig Fisher, CEO of TalentNet Media, a hiring agency. Fisher helps national chains, including Ross Dress for Less, recruit employees.

  • Walmart: 150,000 people.
  • Amazon: 125,000 people.
  • Target: 100,000 people.
  • Kohl’s: 90,000 people.

"We need those workers, not only at the store level, we need them at the distribution center level," said Andy Ellen, head of the North Carolina Retail Merchant’s Association. He also said that retailers need more truck drivers to delivery items.

One silver lining for consumers is that this year holiday deals will start sooner and last longer.

For example, Amazon and Target already started their holiday sales. Target is even telling customers they’ll price match anything purchased between Oct. 10 and Dec. 24.

If you're struggling to find what you're looking for this year, keep checking.

"We expect we’ll be shipping more product throughout the holiday season," according to Katherine Cullen with the National Retail Federation.

She said that technology will help customers this year get what they need.

"A lot of retailers are putting information out there on their websites and their mobile apps for small businesses ... telling you what’s in stock, what they have left, what’s selling quickly," Cullen said.

As for shipping delays, some companies are trying workarounds. Costco chartered its own ships, while the apparel company Lululemon chartered planes. These efforts will get products to stores, but will likely mean that prices will increase.

If you need to mail your holiday gifts, do that early too. The United Parcel Service (UPS), FedEx and the United States Postal Service are all trying to hire their own seasonal staff.

"Be patient as a consumer. Be patient with your retailers, because it’s not easy right now," Fisher said. "We are working at a fraction of the workforce that we should be for a season like this."

Even if you buy online and pickup in–store, staffing shortages will impact that too. Nearly 90% of consumers in a recent survey said they planned to shop that way this year.

 Credits 

Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.