NFIB’s December jobs report found 33 percent (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in December, unchanged from November.

Unfilled job openings remain above the historical average of 24 percent. Twenty-eight percent have openings for skilled workers (up 2 points), and 10 percent have openings for unskilled labor (down 2 points).

“The economic climate continues to support the small business labor market,” NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg said. “Although employment conditions vary, fewer owners report labor as their biggest challenge while compensation pressures are escalating.”

“Unfortunately, Colorado small business owners are struggling to fill open positions,” NFIB State Director Michael Smith said before the start of Colorado’s 2026 legislative session. “(State lawmakers) should resist proposals that undermine the Labor Peace Act or create more onerous red tape for employers. These policies only stand to make it more difficult for Main Street Coloradans to operate their businesses and create good-paying jobs.”

A seasonally adjusted net 17 percent of owners plan to create new jobs in the next three months, down 2 points from November.

Overall, 53 percent of owners reported hiring or trying to hire in December, down 3 points from November. Forty-eight percent of owners (91 percent of those hiring or trying to hire) reported few or no qualified applicants for the positions they were trying to fill (down 2 points). Twenty-five percent reported few qualified applicants (down 5 points), and 23 percent reported none (up 3 points).

In December, 19 percent of small business owners cited labor quality as their single most important problem, down 2 points from November. Labor costs, reported as the single most important problem by small-business owners, rose 1 point to 9 percent.

Seasonally adjusted, a net 31 percent of small business owners reported raising compensation in December, up 5 points from November. A net 24 percent (seasonally adjusted) plan to raise compensation in the next three months, unchanged from November.