Retailers are hoarding labor even as tech layoffs mount

• Some retailers are bucking the trend of layoffs and holding on to workers.
• They are keeping workers they don't need so they're prepared when business picks up.
• The economist Arthur Okun coined the term "labor hoarding" in the 1960s.

If you're paying attention to the headlines right now, it seems like 2023 is shaping up to be the year of the layoff. 

Job cuts that have swept through the tech sector have trickled into retail, with major retailers like Saks Off 5th and Wayfair slashing hundreds, even thousands, of roles.