Everyone knows what a season is, but what is a seasonal job exactly? Do you really know? We’ve got five key points to help you identify and understand the difference between seasonal work and full-time employment.
1 | What is a Season
Great question! People use the term “season” to identify either the time of year (think summer vs winter) or to talk about their busy season, their peak business crunch time. Ask anyone who works in a gym when “resolution season” begins that they will tell you January 1st to mid-February is the new member sign-up crunch time. They are not going to say “resolution season is in winter,” they are going to define their season by when business picks up and when it slows down.
2 | Seasonal Jobs Last for the Season
It’s kind of a no-brainer, but it has to be said: seasonal jobs last the entire business season. They have a start date and an end date that coincide with the peak business crunch. Beaches are going to be busy in the summer and not in the winter. Ski resorts will need extra hands during the winter but probably not in the summer.
3 | Different Regions Have Different Seasons
It’s also true that summer lasts longer in the South than it does in the Mid-West, and therefore summer seasonal jobs run a little longer than they do in the Mid-West. Flip that for winter, the Northeast and the Mid-West have a longer winter season than the South. If you are looking for a summer job, take note of the region you want to experience. If you only have 3 months available, a summer seasonal job in Florida is going to last a bit longer than a summer seasonal job in New Jersey.
Just something to keep in mind as you look at your calendar and start your planning.
4 | Seasonal Jobs will Keep You Busy
There’s a reason companies look for and hire seasonal staff: they have more customers than they can handle. That means lots of people needing lots of things. Restaurants will be full of people wanting food, stores will be packed with people wanting to buy things, hotels will be busy welcoming guests and cleaning rooms on a daily basis. There’s lots of work to be done to keep customers happy. When you are working a seasonal job, you are really working. It’s busy season and you will be busy.
5 | Seasonal Jobs Require Flexibility
In the same way that no one can predict the weather, no one knows what busy season will bring. The beachside town might be quiet the whole first week of summer, or it might be super slammed. You may be asked to work a couple of extra hours because things suddenly “got crazy” or the shop might decide to close early because it’s been an extra quiet day. Either way, be flexible: you’ll either earn extra cash or extra free time and both are nice to have.