New SHRM Research on the U.S. Labor Shortage: Occupational Mismatch Affects One-Third of Job Openings
November 3, 2025
This new data finds where there are skills and talent, opportunity is needed.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Today, new research launched by SHRM – the trusted authority on all things work, workers, and the workplace – shares a more complex picture of the U.S. labor shortage than previously understood. The study, Help Wanted: Understanding the U.S. Labor Shortage, introduces new data that captures a key barrier to matching between employers and job seekers.
SHRM’s new approach goes beyond traditional metrics by incorporating occupational matching constraints. While the standard unemployed-people-per-job-opening ratio (UJOR) provides a useful labor shortage snapshot, it assumes that any unemployed person can fill any job opening. This overlooks critical barriers like occupational mismatch, where job openings may go unfilled and unemployed people may not be able to find work because the occupations demanded by employers align poorly with the occupational experience of unemployed people.
