Boardwalks and piers along the Jersey Shore had their unofficial start to the busy season this past weekend, but the hiring process is still underway.

Atlantic City's Steel Pier
Atlantic City's Steel Pier (Townsquare Media)
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Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, Jenkinson's Boardwalk of Point Pleasant Beach and Steel Pier in Atlantic City all got their rides rolling over the past few days, in preparation for what could be a nice round of business over Easter weekend.

Maria Mastoris, marketing manager at Casino Pier and Breakwater Beach, said they have approximately 450 jobs to offer each year. She estimated they're about halfway done with hires, but they're still pushing for ride operators.

"We have a lot of great ones, but we can add a few more so we have enough people to work throughout the summer when it gets super busy," she said, noting there's also a need for game attendants and line cooks.

Plenty of minors have applied for positions, but that could pose trouble when the pier remains open until midnight during the crucial months of business.

According to Mastoris, a job fair for the rest of the Seaside Heights boardwalk will take place on the first weekend of May.

For the first time, Steel Pier went without a job fair, only accepting applications online.

"With job fairs, you end up processing a whole lot of people you don't use," said pier president Anthony Catanoso.

He said the pier is staffed through June 15, which signals the end of preseason, and that's when their foreign help arrives from countries such as Turkey, Romania and China.

Hundreds of jobs are available each year along Jenkinson's Boardwalk, but according to marketing director Toby Wolf, many applicants were already hired, trained and "geared up" for Palm Sunday weekend.

"Some of the other departments, like the beach - they don't open until Memorial Day Weekend," Wolf said. "They have a little more time so they might get their hiring done a little bit later."

The boardwalk is expecting a big crowd this upcoming weekend due to its 2-for-1 sale on ride tickets.

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