Where Adults Can Find Seasonal Jobs Now

(This article is adapted from two pieces that initially appeared on Job-hunt.org.)

The holiday season provides great opportunities to find temporary part-time and full-time positions of all kinds. But you’ll need to act fast if you hope to land one.

Retailers alone are expected to hire more than 700,000 people, according to Challenger, Gray, and Christmas. 

Don’t assume that every seasonal job at a store is in sales, though. Large retailers also need support staff in areas such as accounting, marketing and distribution. In fact, all of Amazon's seasonal jobs are in the company’s fulfillment centers, where holiday orders are packaged and shipped.

(MORE: 6 Do-Gooder Holiday Jobs That Pay)

These seven retailers plan to fill more than 400,000 positions from now through year-end; for details, click on their job-posting links:

Amazon The biggest online retailer is filling 70,000 seasonal jobs. After clicking its link, watch the short video of an Amazon distribution center at work and take the quiz to see if you fit into the "Amazonian culture."

JC Penney This chain is offering a wide range of opportunities for 35,000 temporary staffers in its department stores, many in suburban malls.

Kohl's The 50,000+ openings translate to an average of 40 per store, plus additional jobs at Kohl's distribution centers.

Macy's It’s filling 83,000 seasonal associate jobs, primarily in sales but also in distribution and administration; many are part-time.

Target This big-box retailer is hiring 70,000 seasonal workers.

Toys "R" Us The world's leading toy retailer plans 45,000 seasonal hires at its stores and distribution centers.

Walmart America’s largest employer is hiring 55,000 seasonal associates, typically for 90- to 180-day assignments, with some second-shift jobs in a few locations.

(MORE: Looking for Work? Try a Temp Job)

Jobs at Holiday Gift Deliverers

Holiday gifts need to be delivered, which means there are openings at employers such as FedEx, UPS and the U.S. Postal Service:

FedEx The company has many seasonal jobs to help with holiday package distribution and delivery.

UPS You could join the men and women in brown by snagging a full-time or part-time job as a driver, driver’s helper or fleet mechanic.

U.S. Postal Service The Post Office is filling thousands of temporary jobs to sort and deliver holiday cards and gifts.

(MORE: Best Ways to Prepare Now to Land a Job in 2014)

Outdoor Seasonal Jobs

If you love the Great Outdoors, or places specializing in them, winter-resort employers like these two may offer the perfect seasonal job for you:

Sugar Bush (Vermont) Resorts Sugar Bush jobs include everything from recreational instructors to caregivers for children to night auditors.

Vail Resorts Its jobs range from ski or snowboard instructors to banquet assistant manager.

Job Boards Focusing on Seasonal Work

You might want also want to spend time browsing these job boards that specialize in seasonal jobs:

Backdoorjobs.com The site for "short-term job adventures" offers a sizeable collection of employers who typically provide outdoor employment to support their businesses ranging from kayak trips in Alaska to sailboat cruises off the coast of Maine. There are also positions in environmental and outdoor education; sustainable living and farming; resort and hospitality and other categories.

CoolWorks.com Calling itself the site for "jobs in great places," CoolWorks has a wide variety of openings including "mushers" for a New Hampshire dogsled business; transportation drivers for a northern California resort and zip line guides in Montana.

Snagajob.com Its jobs are typically classified as hourly, making this site useful for seasonal job searching.

© Copyright, 2013, Susan P. Joyce. All rights reserved. Used with permission