Findings from the recently completed 2026 Employer Needs Survey show North Carolina’s businesses are having an easier time hiring entry-level workers compared to previous years. About one-third of employers who tried to hire in the previous 12 months reported any difficulty, the lowest level of difficulty since we first began asking about entry-level positions. These findings, collected from employers with at least 10 employees during the Winter of 2025/2026, shed light on a labor market characterized by low levels of hiring as well as firing.
With low hiring demand from employers in NC and the US over the past year, those employers who do try to hire may have an easier time than in the past. This may be particularly true for those hiring entry-level positions since work experience and credential demands are lower. At the same time, a job market in which it is easier for employers to hire may be more challenging for jobseekers.
For those employers who have had hiring difficulties, common challenges persist, particularly getting enough applicants and a perceived lack of “employability” skills (such as a strong work ethic, professionalism, reliability, motivation) among those who do apply. These issues were also the top reasons employers gave in the previous two versions of the survey. Other top issues include an unwillingness to accept offered wages and a lack of soft skills on the part of applicants.
Increasing the number of applicants for entry-level positions could be achieved through more aggressive and focused job recruiting as well as improving the attractiveness of jobs through higher offered wages and benefits, improving working conditions and providing opportunities for career progression within a company.
Employability issues, on the other hand, pose a trickier challenge for educators and workforce development practitioners as it is unclear if these types of skills can be taught in a classroom or are primarily gained through work experience. Work-based learning seems to offer the most promise for new jobseekers but unfortunately few employers take advantage of experiences such as formal apprenticeship programs. Our survey found half of employers do not offer any type of work-based learning (including internships, job shadowing, outreach to local schools, etc.) and only 12 percent participate in apprenticeship programs.
Some employers recognize that there may be barriers preventing them from getting more qualified applicants, including
- Commuting distance or other geographic issues (50% of employers with difficulties)
- Applicants lacked childcare (21%)
- Applicants lacked transportation (21%)
- Applicants had criminal records (16%)
- Applicants failed drug screening (16%)
Of course, these perceived barriers only reflect the perspective of employers, while prospective job applicants may differ in their reasons for not applying to open positions. Because labor force participation has been declining for years (mainly due to the aging of the population), any reductions in the barriers to applying and being able to work are worth taking seriously by employers and policymakers.
What can employers do to make better matches with qualified jobseekers? The findings suggest trying to get more applicants by more aggressive and targeted recruiting, actively working to develop a pipeline of future workers through offering work-based learning opportunities, and making sure the offered wages (and benefits) are truly competitive in an economy that has experienced both wage growth and price inflation in recent years. LEAD’s data and research can help inform these decisions by providing wage data for a wide range of industries and occupations. At the same time, work-based learning such as internships and apprenticeships can help develop that future pipeline of workers and expose them to career possibilities. Better matches between employers and jobseekers should result in better outcomes for workers (higher wages and benefits, career progression), businesses (higher productivity and revenue) and the state as a whole through economic growth and shared prosperity.
Look for future posts on additional findings from the 2026 Employer Needs Survey, including differences among industries, more on work-based learning as well as employers’ use of artificial intelligence.