Adecco India forecasts up to 2.7 lakh festive gig and temporary jobs in 2026

Festive hiring across ecommerce, logistics, quick commerce and organised retail could rise 15-20% year on year, Adecco India says. Tier II and III cities may account for 45% of demand as metro employers face talent shortages and higher temporary wages.

— Source published Mon, 17 Aug, 2026, 16:52 IST · First seen Mon, 17 Aug, 2026, 16:59 IST · Source YourStory · Capital

What happened

Adecco India forecasts 2.5-2.7 lakh festive-season temporary and gig jobs, led by ecommerce, logistics, quick commerce and organised retail. Hiring is projected

Key facts

  • 2.5-2.7 lakh temporary and gig jobs expected
  • 15-20% year-on-year hiring growth
  • 2.16 lakh organised-sector jobs estimated last festive season
  • 45% of demand from Tier II and Tier III cities
  • 30% talent crunch in Tier I cities
  • 12-15% temporary wage increase in metros
  • 8-10% temporary wage increase in Tier II and III cities
  • 80% of employers report frontline and operational talent shortages
  • 10-15% peak-period demand-supply gap
  • 25% of seasonal associates expected to move into longer-term roles
  • Report based on inputs from over 100 clients

Why this matters

The shift of an estimated 45% of festive labor demand to Tier II and III cities strengthens the case for regional fulfillment, delivery-partner and staffing-platform expansion or partnerships.

What to watch

  • Pre-festive job postings and onboarding volumes from major e-commerce, quick-commerce, 3PL and organised retail employers.
  • Temporary wage rates, joining bonuses, rider incentives and attrition levels in metros versus Tier II and III cities.
  • Expansion announcements for dark stores, sortation centres, regional warehouses and store-based fulfilment capacity.
  • Festive GMV, order-frequency and average-order-value trends, especially in discretionary categories.
  • Last-mile delivery times, cancellation rates, stock-outs and customer complaints during peak-sale events.
  • Government or state-level changes affecting gig-worker welfare, social-security contributions, platform regulation or contractor compliance.
  • Retailers and marketplaces are likely to lock staffing vendors, delivery partners and warehouse leases earlier than usual, particularly in high-growth Tier II and III clusters.
  • Quick-commerce platforms may expand dark-store density and rider incentives outside metros, increasing local competition for gig workers with food delivery and mobility platforms.
  • Large employers will raise use of workforce-management software, automated sorting, self-checkout, route optimisation and flexible shift models to contain temporary-labour costs.
  • Organised retailers may increase omnichannel fulfilment from stores, using seasonal workers for click-and-collect, packing and inventory replenishment rather than relying only on central warehouses.
  • Staffing firms may offer bundled recruitment, payroll, compliance, transport and attendance-management contracts, gaining pricing power where reliable labour supply is constrained.

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