India festive season hiring surge driven by e-commerce and logistics

India is seeing a significant surge in seasonal employment driven by the festive shopping period, with estimates suggesting the creation of 2.5 to 2.7 lakh temporary and gig jobs. This expansion is largely fueled by e-commerce, quick-commerce, and logistics sectors preparing for increased order volumes.

Major players are heavily investing in infrastructure and workforce. Amazon has announced the creation of over 160,000 seasonal work opportunities across more than 400 cities, supported by an investment of over Rs 2,800 crore in its operations network. Flipkart expects to generate more than 2.5 lakh direct and indirect employment opportunities, including 75,000 roles for first-time workforce entrants.

A notable trend is the geographic spread of this demand, with nearly 45% of workforce needs originating in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Logistics and last-mile delivery hiring is projected to rise by 30-35%. Furthermore, a report from Indeed indicates that 74% of employers intend to retain at least 10% of their festive hires through extensions or permanent roles, particularly in frontline operations such as warehousing, delivery, and production.