Associate vs seasonal associate

The differences between associates and seasonal associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an associate has an average salary of $69,556, which is higher than the $31,132 average annual salary of a seasonal associate.

The top three skills for an associate include customer service, sales floor and patients. The most important skills for a seasonal associate are PET, sales floor, and loss prevention.

Associate vs seasonal associate overview

	Associate	Seasonal Associate
Yearly salary	$69,556	$31,132
Hourly rate	$33.44	$14.97
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	569,041	417,677
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

What does an associate do?

Associates are typically entry-level positions for employees who are taking on their first job or organizational role. They are assigned to teams or departments that are related to their skills or educational background. They usually start with smaller tasks that may not seem as impactful but are still essential to the department. Associates are trained by more tenured team members on the ins and outs of the department and the organization. As they grow with the organization, they are given more responsibilities that directly impact the results of the department's initiatives as they work towards their goals.

What does a seasonal associate do?

Seasonal Associates are employees in a retail store during a particular season, such as holidays or school breaks. They may also be employed in any other business with a high volume of customers or clients, like theme parks, restaurants, or holiday destinations, during the aforementioned seasons. As such, they usually work on administrative or clerical activities. They may help in overseeing the store display, assisting customers, taking inventory, and restocking shelves, among others. In case seasonal associates do exceptionally well, the company may offer them a full-time engagement.

Associate vs seasonal associate salary

Associates and seasonal associates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Associate	Seasonal Associate
Average salary	$69,556	$31,132
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $140,000	Between $25,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Portland, OR
Highest paying state	New York	Hawaii
Best paying company	Simpson Thacher & Bartlett	National Football League
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between associate and seasonal associate education

There are a few differences between an associate and a seasonal associate in terms of educational background:

	Associate	Seasonal Associate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 46%	Bachelor's Degree, 37%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Associate vs seasonal associate demographics

Here are the differences between associates' and seasonal associates' demographics:

	Associate	Seasonal Associate
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 50.4% Female, 49.6%	Male, 39.3% Female, 60.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 8.3% White, 57.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.9% Asian, 7.3% White, 56.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between associate and seasonal associate duties and responsibilities

Associate example responsibilities.

Manage the sale of smoothies at different educational institutes while interacting with hundreds of students and ensuring their happiness and satisfaction.
Manage customer resolutions associate with flight reservations.
Lead the team by exemplify reliability through punctuality and personal integrity.
Help drive sales by providing excellent customer service in gourmet cheese, wine, beer, and coffee departments.
Utilize teamwork, communication, customer service, responsibility, and organizational skills.
Work according to ISO standards.

Seasonal associate example responsibilities.

Manage customer resolutions associate with flight reservations.
Greet customers, properly execute their transaction, and bag groceries.
Operate all equipment such as POS register, ticket scanners, sensors, sensor removers, etc.
Major responsibility are to inform customers of the protection policies that every electronic device are eligible for and work the POS registers
Uphold merchandising and store cleanliness requirements.
Maintain organization and cleanliness of the mobile unit on a regular basis

Associate vs seasonal associate skills

Common associate skills

Customer Service, 16%
Sales Floor, 13%
Patients, 10%
Cleanliness, 8%
Windows, 4%
HR, 4%

Common seasonal associate skills

PET, 24%
Sales Floor, 24%
Loss Prevention, 7%
POS, 6%
Customer Inquiries, 5%
Customer Issues, 5%

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Associate vs Seasonal Associate

Updated January 8, 2025

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