Retailers pare back their seasonal hiring to prepare for ho-hum holidays

Black Friday shoppers may notice longer lines and fewer retail associates in some of their favorite stores than in past holiday seasons as retailers scale back seasonal hiring over concerns about consumer spending.

JCPenney is hiring 12,000 fewer workers than last year. Macy’s 3,000 fewer. Meanwhile a Walmart executive said the retail giant has been hiring “throughout the year” and plans to serve customers with the workers it has. And Challenger, Gray, and Christmas, which tracks employment . . .