NFIB Report Shows Little Change In Employment Market

The National Federation of Independent Business’s May jobs report is out showing little change in the employment market as the Small Business Employment Index remained essentially flat.

The report measured 100.3 in May after measuring 100.4 in April marking the third consecutive month the Index declined with the current reading now below the 2025 average of 101.2 but still slightly above the historical average of 100.0.

The NFIB report also says, in May, a seasonally adjusted 29% of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill, down 5 points from April and marking the lowest level since May 2020. Twenty-seven percent have openings for skilled workers, which is down two points while 9% have openings for unskilled labor which is down four points. 

A seasonally adjusted net 9% of owners plan to create new jobs in the next three months which is down four points from April marking the lowest level since May 2020 and now below the historical average of a net 11%.