In 2025, a record 202.9 million Americans shopped over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, according to the National Retail Federation. That kind of surge is exactly why Black Friday retail staffing needs a real plan, not a last-minute scramble. Get your people, schedule, and store ready now, and the big day runs smoother for everyone.
Here's how to prepare, from the weeks before through the days after.
Black Friday retail staffing key takeaways
Lock in seasonal help and build your schedule well before Black Friday, since the hiring market is tight.
Confirm every shift and keep a backup list so a late call-out doesn't leave you short.
Stagger arrivals so your core team can troubleshoot before the doors open.
Plan for returns, Cyber Monday, and a lighter recovery week, which all need coverage.
Schedule fairly in the weeks leading up to Black Friday
The holiday season is hectic, and if you hastily throw together schedules, your team may be more likely to burn out. Instead, set your schedule in advance and make sure everyone gets fair days and hours throughout the week leading up to the big event.
The jump is dramatic. Most United States stores close or run skeleton crews on Thanksgiving, so retailers on Deputy scheduled just 5,403 shifts that Thursday in 2025. The next day, that number jumped to more than 30,000.
Black Friday alone needs 25.77% more shifts than the average November day. Because the surge hits fast and Thanksgiving is quiet, do your setup and floor prep earlier in the week.
If you need certain skills on the floor, track training and qualifications so you schedule the right people at the right time. And don't forget to build in rest breaks.
Set clear limits around employee preferences and agreed days and times of working. That transparency can help employees feel more satisfied while supporting demand coverage. In fact, more than 80% of early-career service-sector workers would prefer a more predictable schedule, according to Harvard's Shift Project.
You can also adjust the schedule by looking at last year's traffic patterns, spotting when the store filled up and when it quieted down. Artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted forecasting can turn that history into a draft schedule for you to review, adjust, and approve. Then you may be able to staff the busy hours while reducing coverage during slower periods.
Plan tight, too, because staffing is tight. US retail employment has grown just 1 percent since 2022, far behind healthcare and hospitality, according to Deputy's US Big Shift Report. Retailers are running with fewer people, so every Black Friday shift counts.
Make sure you've got adequate staffing
Speaking of demand, are there enough people on your team to manage Black Friday? If not, you'll struggle to run a busy store from open to close. Consider adding staff if the schedule looks overbearing for your current team.
The scale is bigger than most managers expect. Across Deputy in 2025, US retailers scheduled 30,282 shifts for Black Friday alone, adding up to 227,875 scheduled hours. Planning nearly 228,000 hours well means matching staff to foot traffic hour by hour, not just setting one flat staffing level.
It's one day out of the year, so plan enough coverage across the shift. Build in a buffer for the opening, and lean on your standby list of qualified staff if demand spikes. If someone calls in sick, let them swap shifts with a qualified employee so coverage holds.
Hire seasonal help early
Good temporary workers get snapped up fast, so secure seasonal and agency staff now rather than in mid-November.
Retail hiring averaged just 1.5% of staff across Deputy platforms in 2024 and 2025, according to Deputy's US Big Shift Report. Layoffs held steady near 2.1%. In other words, stores are holding on to the people they have rather than adding staff, so reliable temporary workers are in short supply.
Weigh your options against their real cost:
Seasonal hires give you more hands but take time to train.
A staffing agency moves faster but charges a premium.
Tighter scheduling can stretch your current team without extra overtime.
Many managers use a mix of all three.
Timing matters as much as cost. Many retailers start seasonal hiring in September or October, so lock in your approach early. If overtime and agency fees add up, scheduling software can help you control labor costs by matching staff to demand.
Whichever route you choose, start interviews early and give new hires time to train before the rush. Having more prepared people on hand can help your team handle the rush.
Confirm shifts and head off no-shows
Strong Black Friday retail staffing depends on people actually showing up, and absenteeism tends to climb right before the holidays. About two weeks out, confirm every shift with each person individually so there are no surprises. A quick message or a tap to accept the shift makes commitments clear.
The risk is real. Deputy's 2025 data shows 26.29% of US Black Friday shifts went unworked, above the 23.97% November average. With more than a quarter of shifts going unworked, confirm availability more than once and keep a standby list of trained, qualified staff ready.
Do a Thursday check-in the day before, too. If a hard-to-fill shift is still shaky, consider offering premium pay, which can help you secure coverage for your busiest day.
Make coverage easy to fix, as well. When you post open shifts and allow shift swaps, qualified staff can pick up or trade coverage themselves. You set the qualification rules and approve each change.
Build a Black Friday backup list
Even with confirmations, someone will drop out. A pre-agreed backup list turns a scramble into a phone call. Line it up in advance:
Name and role for each on-call person that match the skills you need
The best way to reach them fast, whether that's text, call, or app
What you're offering, such as premium pay or first pick of future shifts
A clear cutoff time when you'll tell them whether you need them
Share the list with your shift leads so anyone can start dialing the moment a gap opens.
Clearly communicate expectations
How should employees handle call-outs over Black Friday and the days before? What's the policy for working overtime, and what will the pay rate be? These are questions you need to answer in advance.
That way, your employees know what to expect and what's expected of them. Assign the areas of the store each associate will cover, too, so customers can find help wherever they are. Your workers can also keep their sections organized as crowds move through.
Stagger arrivals and win the opening rush
Everyone arriving at once creates a jam before the doors even open. Instead, stagger arrivals so the store is ready in layers:
Core team, 90 minutes early: open up, power up registers, and troubleshoot anything broken.
Second wave, 45 minutes early: stock shelves, set up queue lines, and stage popular items.
Final wave, 15 minutes early: quick huddle on deals, then take positions before opening.
The early crew catches problems while there's still time to fix them. By the time the doors open, the whole team is in place instead of clocking in mid-rush.
Assign roles, zones, and breaks for the big day
Black Friday is here, and a store you prep ahead of time will see less stress and fewer hiccups. Give people specific roles, not just zones. Assign a greeter at the door, someone on the fitting room, cashiers, and a floater or two who can jump wherever the pressure builds.
Train your team on crowd control
The crowds are coming, so is your team ready? If you trained them well, they'll have a good handle on tricky moments, like a large group trying to get in at once.
Set up a separate path for the entrance and exit before Black Friday begins. Give shoppers a clear way to leave without fighting through the crowd. You can even set up a queue line to guide people through the entrance, which helps prevent trampling and damage.
Make sure your team knows what to do in the event of a fight or altercation, and follow your store's safety guidance. You don't want anyone getting hurt, so agree in advance on when to escalate.
Schedule breaks on a nonstop day
On a day this busy, breaks get skipped unless you plan them. Build a visible rotation so people know exactly when they step away and who covers them:
Schedule applicable meal and rest breaks based on your policies and applicable requirements.
Pair break buddies so one covers the other's zone.
Post the rotation where the team can see it.
Track break times so you can spot missed breaks and step in.
Logging break and clock times gives you the record you need to support manager oversight and catch problems early. Rested staff stay sharper and friendlier when the store is packed.
Keep your team in the loop on deals
Your staff needs to do more than show up. They need to answer questions about specific deals and promotions. Walk them through which products are on sale and what each promotion involves.
Go over sale prices, bundled deals, and other offers so everyone can answer with confidence. Train them on where these deals live in the store, so they can point shoppers in the right direction. Odds are you'll have a handful of deals most people ask about, so make sure your cashiers are in the loop as well.
