The women's clothing store Express hired 15 new temporary employees, mostly high school students, to work from the end of October through the second week of January.

As an incentive to take the job despite its clear endpoint, Express employees are given a significant discount on store merchandise. It's always an attractive benefit, but even more so with the prospect of Christmas shopping looming.

The Gap, on the other hand, didn't need to lift a finger in order to implement a holiday hiring policy--it was already in place. The store hires all its workers on a short-term basis, according to Tania Fernandez, a manager at the Brattle Street location.

If employees enjoys their initial 90-day stint at the Harvard Square store, they have the option to stay on, contingent upon a good work record. Though it steps up the pace when the holiday shopping season begins, The Gap recruits all year.

The Harvard Coop also prefers that its employees be permanent, according to General Manager David Sullivan, although the store attempts to "build up for the Christmas season."

"[The number of employees needed] varies from day to day," says Sullivan, emphasizing the store's great flexibility in working with employees' schedules.

But with the hot economy of the past few years, Sullivan says, such flexibility on the part of retailers is mandatory.