Macy's plans to hire 86,000 this holiday season

Macy's Inc. announced plans to open its doors at 6 p.m. this Thanksgiving, two hours earlier than last year, to accommodate shoppers who responded in droves last year. The Cincinnati retailer's decision is likely to be criticized by traditionalists and copied by its retail rivals for Black Friday shoppers.

(Lisa DeJong, Plain Dealer file)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- In a move that will likely be both criticized and copied, Macy's Inc. confirmed that it will again kick off its Black Friday sales on Thanksgiving. The Cincinnati-based upscale department store chain, which last year ended a 155-year tradition of closing its doors on Thanksgiving Thursday, will open two hours earlier this year -- at 6 p.m.

The announcement follows media reports that Macy's employees had received emails asking if they were interested in working the earlier hours.

It also comes in the wake of the National Retail Federation's forecast that holiday sales will soar 4.1 percent to $616.9 billion this year, a full percentage point higher than last year's actual increase of 3.1 percent.

Who's open on Thanksgiving:

6 a.m.: Kmart (open 42 hours through midnight Black Friday).

7 a.m.: Big Lots (through midnight), Marc's (select stores)

5 p.m.: Best Buy, JCPenney, Toys 'R' Us (open 30 hours through 11 p.m. Black Friday)

6 p.m.: Kohl's, Macy's, Office Depot, OfficeMax, Sears, Staples, Target, Walmart (doorbusters start at 6 p.m.).

7 p.m.: Five Below.

(Sources: The stores)

"With the growing customer-driven trend toward early shopping for Black Friday each year, Macy's aims to accommodate customers who count on us to be there when they are ready to shop," said Holly Thomas, Macy's group vice president for media relations and cause marketing, via email.

"In response to the significant, sustained customer interest in last year's opening on Thanksgiving, both at Macy's and at many other retailers, we will be opening our full-line department stores at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 27."

She said employees who work on Thanksgiving will receive incentive pay, as well as food during their shift. "Each store has the option to order the food that their associates prefer," she said.

Related Plain Dealer stories:

Nov. 21: Anti- #BlackFriday Clevelanders share their favorite places to buy unique, local gifts

Nov. 20: 140 million shoppers could hit stores or retailers' websites Thanksgiving weekend; 73 million want to see the deals before deciding

Nov. 18: 50 percent of Americans think extended Thanksgiving shopping hours is a terrible idea; 33 percent say it's terrific

Nov. 15: Two Black Friday shoppers are already camped outside a Best Buy near Los Angeles

Nov 12: Toys 'R' Us and JCPenney both opening at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving

Nov. 7: BJ's Wholesale Club joins Costco in refusing to open on Thanksgiving

Nov. 4: Staples, Walmart and Amazon have already launched the 2014 Christmas shopping season

Nov. 3: Kmart will open at 6 a.m. on Thanksgiving and stay open 42 hours straight, through midnight Black Friday

Oct. 31: Walmart says Black Friday "starts now," with 20,000 rollbacks beginning Saturday, Nov. 1

Oct. 23: Target offers free shipping through Dec. 20 and other incentives to woo back wary shoppers

Oct. 22: Ohio retailers will find much to cheer in the National Retail Federation's latest holiday spending survey

Macy's employs about 172,500 people nationwide. In addition to volunteers from its workforce, it will also staff stores with 86,000 seasonal workers it is currently hiring company wide, including about 450 at stores in Greater Cleveland.

"We work diligently to staff Thanksgiving with associates who volunteer to work and doing so means that our people are able to make their own decisions about how they contribute to our most important and busiest weekend of the year," Thomas said.

"We also heard last year from many associates who appreciated the opportunity to work on Thanksgiving so they could have time off on Black Friday. Additionally, associates who work an opening shift on Thanksgiving will be compensated with incentive pay.

"In just a few days, the large majority of the shifts have already been filled voluntarily. We deeply value the commitment and contribution of our associates across the country as we continue to focus on meeting customer needs in today's competitive retail climate," Thomas added.

Retail consultant Robert Antall, managing partner of Consumer Centric Consulting LLC, said that "Opening on Thanksgiving has become a competitive necessity for most retailers. If your competition is open, you have to be open as well or lose market share. Further, with easy access to the Internet, if stores aren't open, customers will shop online."

He said he believes that Macy's will get all the volunteers it needs to staff its stores. "Given the fact that real incomes have been stagnant for over a decade, as you know, many families are struggling to make ends meet. The extra income and/or the 'overtime' pay is badly needed by many families."

Antall added that many of Macy's employees at that time of year are "temporary workers who often need the job and are willing to do whatever it takes to increase their take-home pay. So I don't think this is placing a burden on their staff. It seems to me that Macy's is taking a practical approach to its employees."

Shopping Days Left Until Christmas

loading time...

until Christmas