NFIB’s August jobs report shows that 32% of small business owners had job openings they could not fill in August, a decrease of one percentage point from July. This is the lowest level of unfilled job openings since July 2020. Openings for skilled workers accounted for 28%, down one point, while openings for unskilled labor rose to 13%.
“While the economy appears to be doing well, small businesses are scaling back on job openings,” said Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. “Small business owners with job openings are still looking for qualified applicants, many citing labor quality as their single most important problem.”
In August, 21% of small business owners identified labor quality as their top concern, unchanged from the previous month. The share of owners who reported labor costs as their main issue dropped by one point to 8%.
Overall, 53% of small business owners reported hiring or trying to hire in August, which is four points lower than in July. Of those hiring or attempting to hire, 43% (or 81% of that group) reported few or no qualified applicants for open positions—a five-point decrease from July. Specifically, 26% said there were few qualified applicants and 17% reported none.
Job openings remained highest in construction, manufacturing, and transportation sectors. In contrast, wholesale and finance industries had the lowest number of open positions.
A seasonally adjusted net 15% of owners plan to create new jobs over the next three months—an increase of one point from July and marking the third consecutive monthly rise.
Additionally, a seasonally adjusted net 29% of small business owners raised compensation in August (up two points from July), while a net 20% plan to raise compensation in the next three months (up three points). Reports listing labor costs as the primary problem decreased by one point to 8%.
The full NFIB Jobs Report can be accessed at https://www.nfib.com/surveys/small-business-economic-trends/.
