GameStop to hire 15,000 seasonal workers

updated 12:18 p.m. ET Oct. 27, 2009

NEW YORK - As usual, GameStop Inc. plans to hire about 15,000 seasonal, part-time workers to help with the holiday rush, the video game retailer said Tuesday.

But the company expects more applicants for the jobs — which pay minimum wage — than in previous years because of the economic turmoil that's left millions unemployed.

GameStop usually hires temporary employees in the fall, until Dec. 24, and said Tuesday the number of the new part-time workers this year is "consistent with" its seasonal hiring in 2008 and 2007."

The move will temporarily increase the company's employee base by 46 percent. The number of its in-store "game advisers" — people who help shoppers pick out video games — will grow by about 78 percent.

The company said the temporary jobs are spread out evenly across its stores around the U.S.

Shares of GameStop, the world's largest video game retailer, rose 47 cents, or 2 percent, to $24.55 in midday trading.

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