In the southwestern United States, wildfire season kicked off earlier than usual this year as dangerous drought conditions persist across a staggering 48 percent of the nation. Meanwhile, state and federal forestry services are struggling to fill thousands of vacancies for wildland firefighters as would-be applicants turn to more lucrative and less demanding careers. The worst part…

With the end of the academic year in sight, an overwhelming number of educators are planning to close the book on their teaching careers. Much of this stems from post-pandemic classroom behavioral challenges with students and ongoing staff shortages that create excessive workloads for teachers. Many educators who have 25 years or more under their…

John Schnatter, founder of the Papa John’s pizza chain, said that the combination of supply chain problems, surging inflation, and the labor shortage are pushing up costs for businesses, hurting quality, service, and the bottom line. “We’re seeing a lot of pressure now at Papa John’s and throughout the economy,” Schnatter told NTD News in an…

LOS ANGELES—Los Angeles County’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority will cut their bus services by 10 percent and reduce rail line frequency because Metro is struggling to find enough bus and rail operators to meet the demand of its 740,000 daily users. “We’re currently facing a crisis both for our customers and for our employees,” Chief Operations…

Due to health reasons, a desire to have a work-life balance, or a preference to avoid the commute, workers throughout the country are taking a stand for the home office. Among those surveyed, 58 percent stated they prefer a fully remote job post-pandemic, according to a FlexJobs survey that was carried out in July and…

Companies in the United States plan to give employees the biggest wage increase in more than a decade next year, according to the Conference Board report released Wednesday. Businesses are foreshadowed to increase pay by an average of 3.9 percent in 2022, marking the highest rate increase since 2008, and up 0.9 percent from the reported figure…

The U.S. economy might need to leap over a few hurdles in 2022 as many factors could derail the post-pandemic recovery, financial experts warn. One of these threats could be the country’s intensifying labor shortage. As companies hang “now hiring” signs on their doors nationwide, employers say they cannot fill these positions. It may not…

Less than 20 percent of organizations rank employee retention and engagement as a top priority, despite a global labor shortage, according to a new report from NTT DATA. The research (pdf) polled 1,000 business and IT executives across 16 industries in North America to uncover how organizations are prioritizing digital investments and strategies in the wake of constant disruptions stemming…

A record number of Americans are quitting their jobs. What’s behind it? NTD asks a hiring expert. With a nationwide labor shortage, companies are rushing to add robots to assembly lines. Drugmaker Johnson & Johnson is spinning off its consumer health products unit and splitting into two companies. What’s behind the move?

Commentary America faces a labor shortage. Some 3 million job openings remain unfilled. The labor force—those working or actively seeking work—remains 5.5 million short of pre-pandemic levels. The worker shortage is slowing the pace of the recovery. Though the teeming mass of asylum seekers at the southern border might seem to offer a solution, it…