India’s festive hiring season is increasingly becoming a route to longer-term talent, with 74% of employers expecting to retain at least 10% of their 2026 festive hires beyond the peak period, according to Indeed’s Festive Season Outlook 2026.
The data shows employers are also starting their festive workforce planning earlier. While 53% expect festive hiring to increase from 2025, 69% said active hiring had begun or was expected to begin by September, compared with 34% last year.
Workforce planning had also started or was expected to start by August for 66% of employers, up from 40% in 2025.
The findings indicate a shift in how employers are approaching seasonal hiring, with festive recruitment increasingly being used to identify talent for extensions, renewals and longer-term roles.
Earlier workforce planning
The acceleration in hiring activity comes as employers prepare for a seasonal rise in demand across retail, e-commerce, logistics and other frontline operations.
Sashi Kumar, Managing Director, Indeed India said, “The interesting shift is that the festive season is becoming a window into how companies want to build their workforce more broadly. Businesses still need the flexibility to respond to a sharp rise in demand, but they’re also recognising that short-term hiring doesn’t have to mean short-term thinking.
“When employers start earlier and create opportunities for strong performers to stay on, the festive period can become a practical way to discover talent that might otherwise have been missed,” He added.
Frontline roles lead demand
Festive hiring demand is concentrated in roles supporting fulfilment and delivery operations. Delivery and last-mile executives and warehouse associates, pickers and packers each account for 29% of expected demand, followed by production, assembly and packaging roles at 27%.
The hiring challenge, however, extends beyond filling positions. Nearly half of employers, or 47%, identified reliability and readiness to work shifts, nights or weekends as the hardest capability to find among festive applicants.
The finding follows challenges reported during the previous festive hiring cycle, when only 43% of employers considered festive hires mostly job-ready and 71% said no-shows or attrition were common.
Hiring spreads beyond metros
Festive hiring is also expanding geographically, with employers expecting increased demand across smaller cities and towns.
Nearly half, or 49%, expect hiring growth in Tier 2 cities, while 38% anticipate growth across Tier 3 cities and smaller towns. Another 38% expect hiring growth to remain concentrated in major cities.
The data suggests that festive workforce demand is expanding alongside organised retail, e-commerce, delivery and distribution networks rather than moving away from metropolitan markets.
Temporary roles, permanent ambitions
Despite employers' growing interest in retaining festive workers, most seasonal roles remain temporary or flexible. On average, around three-quarters of expected festive hires will be employed through fixed-term, contractual, temporary, gig or part-time arrangements, with permanent full-time roles accounting for around a quarter.
For workers, however, the prospect of continuity remains important. Around 32% would accept a festive role lasting up to three months only if there is a clearly stated possibility of extension or conversion, while 31% would consider only longer-term or permanent work.
Pay alone is also not the primary consideration for many workers. Seven in 10 would choose an offer that keeps open the possibility of longer-term employment. Around 35% prefer standard pay with a clear pathway to a longer-term role, while 36% would choose slightly higher pay with some possibility of extension.
Only 13% would choose substantially higher pay if there were no possibility of staying on.
Retention beyond peak demand
For employers, the growing focus on retention could make festive hiring part of a broader talent pipeline rather than a purely short-term response to seasonal demand.
“There’s an assumption that short-term work is mostly about making more money at the moment, but the data tells a more nuanced story. People are thinking about what they earn, but also what they walk away with when the season ends,” Sashi noted.
“If a role offers experience, some certainty and a genuine chance to continue, that can carry real value. It shows that even when people choose flexible work, they’re still thinking about the longer arc of their careers,” he elaborated.
The findings point to a festive hiring cycle in which employers are balancing short-term workforce flexibility with longer-term talent needs, while workers increasingly assess temporary opportunities based on the potential for stability and career continuity.
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