The UK’s seasonal jobs market remains conservative, with seasonal job postings 43% below their 2018 level, according to new data from hiring platform Indeed. This is a steeper decline than across the wider UK jobs market, where postings have fallen 32% over the same period.
Meanwhile, search levels remain broadly in line with last year, with a strong jobseeker interest. This depleted seasonal jobs market comes amid wider weakness in UK hiring, with overall UK job postings are down 11% since the start of 2026 and 32% below their February 2020 baseline.
The decline reflects broader pressure on hiring, with most occupational categories recording year-on-year falls, including retail and hospitality.
Retail and sales roles dominate the most common seasonal job titles – but the logistics industry also made it into the top ten this year, with operations assistants, mail sorters and seasonal warehouse associates appearing among the most common titles.
The most in-demand seasonal jobs were:
1) Seasonal associate
2) Sales assistant
3) Operations assistant
4) Retail sales associate
5) Sales advisor
6) Client advisor
7) Sales associate
8) Coffee shop assistant
9) Mail sorter
10) Seasonal warehouse associate
The weakness in seasonal hiring forms part of a broader reduction in opportunities for younger workers. Graduate job postings are down around 13% year-on-year as of 2nd October and stand at their lowest level for this point in the year since 2020. Summer job postings, covering temporary and seasonal roles in sectors including hospitality, retail, tourism and events, had one of their weakest summers in four years.
Together, the findings point to a tightening of two important entry routes into employment: graduates are competing for fewer early-career roles, while students and school leavers are facing reduced access to the seasonal jobs that often provide their first experience of work.
Jack Kennedy, Senior Economist at Indeed, said that subdued seasonal hiring echoes a weak UK labour market, with the data suggesting that jobseekers looking for a temporary bridge into work are facing a smaller scope of opportunities.