Labor crisis easing for small businesses

(The Center Square) – Despite slight easing, finding employees continues to be a major issue for small businesses in Ohio.

The National Federation of Independent Business showed in its September jobs report that 34% of small business owners nationally continue to report job openings they can’t fill.

That’s a better number than in previous months, but NFIB Ohio State Director Chris Ferruso thinks business owners are still working to end the year strong.

“As we move into the final quarter of 2024, the worker shortage has eased slightly for Main Street but is still a major concern for many of Ohio’s small businesses,” Ferruso said. “Owners are raising compensation to stay competitive and are hopeful to end the year in a better place.”

Across the nation, according to the report , 59% of owners said they hired or tried to hire in September, down 3 points from August. Ninety percent of those hiring or trying to hire say they are getting few or no qualified applications.

At the same time, 30% have openings for skilled workers, which is down 6 points from August, and 14% have openings for unskilled labor, down a point from the previous report.

“Overall, the job market appears to be softening,” NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg said. “Fewer small firms have openings they can’t fill as we head into fall. But many still report trouble finding qualified applicants and plans to increase compensation are once again on the rise.”

While the percentage of small businesses reporting labor quality as their top operating problem fell 4 points from August to 17%, labor costs were reported as the single most important problem facing those businesses.

Also, 15% of owners say they plan to create new jobs in the next three months, 2 points higher than in August.