Hiring Headache? 15 Jobs Facing a Talent Shortage
The “Great Resignation” in 2022 left several jobs in multiple industries scrambling to find talent to fill everything from entry-level to C-suite executive positions. There was a slowdown in quitting in 2023, but layoffs left many workers without jobs. In 2024, great jobs still need to be filled by the right candidate.
With core inflation (which doesn’t include food or gasoline prices) still hitting 3% at the time of writing, paychecks for most Americans are still suffering, and the unemployment rate is sitting at 4.1% for July.
If you’re looking for a new job or want to know which jobs and industries suffer the most from a lack of talent, we’ve found the top ten places to search for your next job.
1. Nurses
The healthcare field is still struggling well into 2024 to meet the demand for nurses and primary care physicians. Experts expect demand in this field to rise. By 2030, California alone will need 387,900 more nurses to meet the needs of hospitals, long-term care facilities, and home health.
2. Accountants
If you thought tax season was your version of misery, just wait. Since 2022, 300,000 accountants have left their jobs to seek other opportunities. This increased strain on remaining accountants creates a backlog for the IRS for the current tax season and other tax-related inquiries, payments, problems, etc.
3. Chief Executive Officers
Being a CEO is not all sunshine and rainbows. The skill set needed to be successful is diverse, from leadership to tech savviness and everything in between. This dilemma is becoming a problem as Baby Boomers enter and approach retirement. The number of qualified Gen Xers and Millennials who can fill the gaps is just not there.
4. Forklift Operators
The Manufacturing and Warehouse industries are hurting as a shortage of qualified workers, to the tune of 490,000 open jobs in 2021, drags into 2024. The outlook now isn’t much better as the jobs are skilled labor that pays more like a job at McDonald’s.
Companies are even becoming so desperate that they are turning to remote operators to fill the gap.
5. Engineers
Engineers can pick up the litter when it comes to jobs because the demand for engineers in every discipline is around 400,000 annually.
Unfortunately, the outlook is that 33% of engineering roles will remain unfilled through at least 2030, and those who do get filled will need continuing education to keep up with upgrading skills and technology.
6. Lawyers
Two short years ago, one in five lawyers under age 40 wanted to quit. Litigation teams looking to attract lawyer talent find it challenging to fill lucrative roles, let alone pro-bono slots.
Factors like a negative work-life balance, workplace harassment, and declining mental health are all reasons lawyers cite when departing from their careers.
7. Police Officers
In 2022, police officer resignations rose 47%, and small towns are shuttering their police agencies at an alarming rate. While most salary indicators post higher wages for police officers over their deputy sheriff counterparts, the pay and benefits haven’t been enough to draw talent into the policing pool.
8. Fire Fighters
Wildfires aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, but the resources and manpower to fight them may be. NPR reported that nearly 25% of the government’s wildland firefighting jobs were still vacant as of May 2024. Rookies are significantly lacking, and summer heat increases the chances of fires getting out of control.
9. Emergency Service Technicians
Burnout, low wages, and a poor work-life balance are all reasons states are struggling to meet the demand for Paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs). In 2022, the turnover rates for EMTs and Paramedics were 36% and 27% respectively.
10. Veterinarians
Veterinary medicine is hurting for qualified professionals in both the veterinary and technician areas. A recent AAVMC (American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges) report suggests that it would take 30 years at current training levels to reach the veterinary healthcare needs of the population by 2030.
11. Dental Hygienists
Dental hygienists cited feeling overworked, poor workplace culture, and poor pay as reasons for quitting. While programs exist to train a new crop of hygienists, they are not sufficient to keep up with the demand. In 2023, at least five counties in Alabama alone didn’t have a single dentist working to care for patients.
12. Bakers
By 2030, projected shortages for bakers throughout the United States will be around 53.4K jobs. If supply chain issues were a thing for you during the pandemic, they aren’t likely to get much better if we can’t find people to do the necessary jobs. Food, water, and shelter are the pillars of society, and we can’t fill those jobs.
13. Electricians
In 2016, 70% of electricians said they were concerned about a deep shortage across the nation. By 2022, those shortages had become a reality, and the issue only worsened. An estimated 80,000 job openings will remain unfilled annually over the next ten years.
14. Construction Workers
In 2021, Congress passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) to increase access to safe roads, bridges, railways, clean drinking water, and high-speed internet. One big obstacle to implementing that law is the serious need for construction workers. According to the report, the bill will add 1.5 million jobs per year, but filling those jobs is proving difficult, with the US needing more than 430,000 workers in 2023.
15. Plumbers
Like other skilled labor jobs, the US will be short 550,000 workers to meet demand by 2027. This shortage puts a damper on everything from repairs and new-home and business construction to flood recovery and building upgrades.This shortage is fantastic news for plumbers but not so great for the rest of the US or the economy.
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