Wyoming Comment on Today’s Jobs Report from NFIB

February 2, 2023

Wyoming Comment on Today’s Jobs Report from NFIB

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Tony Gagliardi, Wyoming State Director, Tony.Gagliardi@nfib.org or Tony Malandra, Senior Media Manager, Anthony.Malandra@nfib.org CHEYENNE, Wyo., Feb. 2, 2023—The picture hasn’t changed at all on the difficulty small-business owners across the nation are having in finding good help, according to the latest Jobs Report released today by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB). “There are other factors contributing to the problem small-business owners are having in finding employees,” said Tony Gagliardi, NFIB’s Wyoming state director, “but state legislatures need to be aware of some of the things they might be doing, however unintentionally, that can exacerbate the situation. One such looming problem is Senate File 160 calling for tolling along Interstate 80, which we believe would result in the loss of revenue to the state due to commercial carriers bypassing Wyoming. It would also increase traffic on other roads not intended to accommodate commercial traffic.” Wyoming has always been a pro-small-business state, said Gagliardi, and passing Senate File 151, which would bring some badly needed transparency to the world of pharmacy benefit managers, would go a long way to solidifying our reputation as a state friendly to its Main Street enterprises. “This bill is about preserving independent pharmacies, which given the ruralness of Wyoming is absolutely essential.” Released on the first Thursday of every month, NFIB’s Jobs Report is one of the 10 components of the association’s Small Business Economic Trends report (aka the Optimism Index), which is released the second Tuesday of every month. The SBET/Optimism Index is considered by federal and state policymakers to be the bellwether measurement of America’s Main Street economy. The SBET/Optimism Index is a national snapshot not broken down by state. The typical NFIB member employs 10 people and reports gross sales of about $500,000 a year. From NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg on Today’s Jobs Report “The labor shortage continues to be a major concern for small businesses in the New Year as nearly all owners trying to hire are reporting no or few qualified applicants. Small businesses’ sales opportunities are limited because of the staffing shortage but owners continue to make changes in business operations to compensate.” Highlights from the latest NFIB Jobs Report

Forty-five percent (seasonally adjusted) of all owners reported job openings they could not fill in the current period, up 4 points from December. The share of owners with unfilled job openings far exceeds the 49-year historical average of 23 percent although it is 6 percentage points lower than the record high of 51 percent last reached in May.
Seasonally adjusted, a net 46 percent reported raising compensation, up 2 points from December, and just 4 points below the 49-year record high set in January last year.
Industries with highest percentage of job opening:

— Construction 57% — Transportation 49% — Manufacturing 46% — Services 45% — Retail 41% — Wholesale 41% — Professional 34% — Finance 30% — Agriculture 26%

Keep up with the latest Wyoming small-business news at www.nfib.com/WY and on Twitter @NFIB_WY ### For almost 80 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. NFIB Wyoming P.O. Box 1890 Cheyenne, WY 82009 866-639-1846 NFIB.com/WY Twitter: @NFIB_WY