DENVER, Feb. 3, 2022—From Tony Gagliardi, Colorado state director for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) on today’s release of NFIB’s monthly Jobs Report. The report is a national snapshot not broken down by state.

“It’s shocking employers are now saying the quality of the employee far outweighs the employment costs. Finding skilled employees now is the most important factor for small business owners.”

From NFIB Chief Economist William Dunkelberg

“Small business owners are managing the reality that the number of job openings exceeds the number of unemployed workers, producing a tight labor market and adding pressure on wage levels. Reports of owners raising compensation continues at record-high levels to attract applicants to their open positions.”

Highlights from Today’s Jobs Report

• A net 50% (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners reported raising compensation, up two points from December and a 48-year record high reading. A net 27% plan to raise compensation in the next three months, down five points from December.
  
  
  
• Twenty-three percent of owners said that labor quality was their top business problem, down two points from December. Eleven percent of owners cited labor costs as their top business problem. Reports of labor costs as the top business problem are at 48-year record high levels, just two points below December’s record-breaking 13%.
  
  
  
• Forty-seven percent of owners (seasonally adjusted) reported job openings they could not fill in the current period, down two points from December. The number of unfilled job openings still far exceeds the 48-year historical average of 23%.

Contact: Tony Gagliardi, Colorado State Director, tony.gagliardi@nfib.org,
or Tony Malandra, Senior Media Manager, anthony.malandra@nfib.org

Keep up with the latest Colorado small-business news at www.nfib.com/colorado or by following NFIB on Twitter @NFIB_CO or on Facebook @NFIB.CO

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For 78 years, NFIB has been advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, and member-driven association. Since its founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses and remains so today. For more information, please visit nfib.com.

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