Nordstrom to Hire About 11,800 Workers for Holidays

Nordstrom (NYSE:JWN) plans to hire about 11,800 seasonal employees for the coming holiday season, mostly for sales and stock positions at the upscale department-store chain and its less pricey Nordstrom Rack locations.

The Seattle company's plans also include the addition of 1,600 temporary workers to support its e-commerce business at three fulfillment centers, with one location each in Iowa, Pennsylvania and California.

The company said some of the part-time and full-time temporary jobs could lead to permanent positions.

Overall, holiday hiring by U.S. retailers is expected to be flat this year, partly because of changing shopping habits and job growth in the sector earlier this year, according to global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.

Meanwhile, employment agencies for retailers and logistics companies have been saying they are having trouble finding warehouse workers to stock early holiday inventory and employees to train for work in fulfillment centers, where holiday orders will be packed and shipped.

Last month, department-store operator Macy's (NYSE:M) said it plans to hire roughly 85,000 seasonal workers for the coming holiday season, slightly less than levels a year earlier.

Also in September, Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE:WMT) said that it plans to hire 60,000 seasonal workers for the coming holiday season, matching last year's hiring level.

Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com