NFIB’s October jobs report found that 32% (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in October, unchanged for the second straight month.
Before August, the last time unfilled job openings reached 32% was in December 2020, during the pandemic. Twenty-eight percent have openings for skilled workers (unchanged from September), and 11% have openings for unskilled labor (down 2 points).
“Despite their ongoing challenges finding qualified applicants, New Jersey small business owners remain committed to serving their customers, hiring new employees, and growing their businesses,” said NFIB New Jersey State Director Eileen Kean. “As we approach the busy holiday season, Main Street owners are hopeful that hiring challenges will ease and the labor market will strengthen in the Garden State.”
A seasonally adjusted net 15% of owners plan to create jobs in the next three months, down 1 point from September. This marks the first decline since hiring plans started to increase in May 2025. Firms remain interested in hiring but are finding it difficult to fill openings.
Overall, 56% of small business owners reported hiring or trying to hire in October, down 2 points from September. Forty-nine percent (88% of those hiring or trying to hire) of owners reported few or no qualified applicants for the positions they were trying to fill (down 1 point). Thirty-one percent of owners reported few qualified applicants for their open positions (up two points) and 18% reported none (down 3 points).
In October, 27% of small business owners cited labor quality as their single most important problem, up 9 points from September and the highest level since the record high of 29% in November 2021.
Labor quality reported as the single most important problem was the highest in the construction, transportation, and professional services industries, and lowest in finance and agriculture. Nearly half (49%) of small businesses in the construction industry reported labor quality as their single most important problem, 22 points higher than for all firms. Only 13% of businesses in the finance industry reported labor quality as their single most important problem.
Labor costs reported as the single most important problem for business owners fell 3 points from September to 8%.
Seasonally adjusted, a net 26% of small business owners reported raising compensation in October, down 5 points from September. A net 19% (seasonally adjusted) plan to raise compensation in the next three months, unchanged from September.
