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2 days agoAre we in a recession? Maybe professional Santas can tell us
Demand for professional Santas and other seasonal retail workers has cooled this holiday season, reflecting a broader decline in seasonal hiring.
When you picture Santa Claus, a white, bearded, overweight and jolly man who dashes around delivering gifts to children during the Christmas season probably comes to mind. Yet, not everyone who dons the red suit fits this stereotype. That's what Bethany Cockburn, Borbala Csillag and I learned when we teamed up to study professional Santas. For our study, we looked into how these professional Santas were able to "be" Santa, even if they didn't fully fit the image.