ORLANDO, Fla. — The seasonal job market is expected to look different in this year of the coronavirus, as even more holiday shoppers make their purchases online and unemployment remains high.

Companies such as UPS are loading up with package handlers and drivers, and jobs available inside stores are changing as well to serve online customers. Big shopping days like Black Friday could also potentially see smaller crowds as deals start even earlier, meaning retailers might not need to staff up as much as they normally do.

The number of people looking for jobs also is sure to be higher.

In August, the unemployment rate in metro Orlando was 11% compared with 3.1% at the same time last year. In September, Walt Disney Co. notified the state 6,700 Walt Disney World non-union employees were losing their jobs, adding to the tens of thousands of mostly tourism-related jobs lost in the region since the virus took hold.

Last year, workers had the bargaining power as employers offered extra perks to fill jobs, said Hector Sandoval, director of the economic analysis program for the Bureau of Economic and Business Research at the University of Florida.

“Now this year I think it's on the other side,” Sandoval said. “The economic situation is just very, very different.”

Delivery, pickup jobs

UPS plans to hire more than 100,000 seasonal employees for the annual increase in packages from October through January.

“We're preparing for a record peak holiday season,” chief human resources officer Charlene Thomas said in a news release. “The COVID-19 pandemic has made our services more important than ever.”

The company reports that over the past three years about 35% of seasonal employees were hired for permanent jobs after the holidays.

While not billed as seasonal jobs, Amazon announced in September it was hiring more than 500 full-time employees for its new warehouse in Deltona. Those jobs start at $15 an hour. The online retailer is hiring 100,000 people in the United States and Canada as it expands its footprint.

Walmart said it plans to hire more than 20,000 seasonal workers in its eCommerce fulfillment centers across the country, with starting hourly wages ranging from $15.75 to $23.75. The company has one of those centers in Davenport.

“The holidays are always a special time, and this year, we think the season will mean even more to our customers,” Greg Smith, executive vice president for supply chain for Walmart U.S., said in a news release. “As more of them turn to online shopping, we want to ensure we're staffed and ready to help deliver that special gift to their loved ones while continuing to fulfill our customer's everyday needs.”