Target to hire 120,000 for holidays, pay starts at $12 an hour

NEW YORK (AP) - Target plans to hire more than 120,000 people for the busy holiday shopping season, a 20 percent increase from last year.

The retailer says the temporary hires will stock store shelves and check people out at the register. In addition, it plans to hire 7,500 people to pack online orders at its warehouses. Target says it will pay workers $12 an hour, a dollar more an hour than last year.

With a strong job market, retailers will likely face a harder time attracting workers for the holidays since workers can be pickier about where they work. Target says it will hold hiring events at stores next month.

Minneapolis-based Target Corp. has more than 1,800 stores around the country.

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Business writer David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.