Logo courtesy of National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB)

SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) – California state director John Katabeck for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) said the Dec. 4 release of the monthly NFIB Jobs Report showed that 33 percent (seasonally adjusted) of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in November.

That’s up one point from October and the first increase since June. Unfilled job openings remain above the historical average of 24 percent:

“We will shortly release our small business legislative agenda for the 2026 half of the session and topping that list will be a call for state lawmakers to pay off, or significantly down, California’s unemployment insurance (UI) loans it took out from the federal government during the pandemic,” Katabeck said.

“It’s worth reminding everyone that only business owners pay unemployment insurance taxes, so having to calculate this debt has a big impact on whether or not to hire more employees or cut back the hours of existing employees or, worst of all, to lay off workers,” Katabeck said. “It can’t be a badge of honor, especially going into an election year, that California is the only state that has not paid Uncle Sam back the money it took to keep its UI Trust Fund solvent and unemployment checks going to those in need of them.”

National Federation of Independent Business’ Jobs Report is a national survey of National Federation of Independent Business-member small-business owners, not broken down by state. The typical National Federation of Independent Business member employs between one and nine people and reports gross sales of about $500,000 a year.

“The economy has continued to grow steadily, despite the recent government shutdown. On Main Street, job growth continues to be constrained by a lack of qualified employees,” said Bill Dunkelberg, chief economist at the National Federation of Independent Business.

A seasonally adjusted net 19 percent of owners plan to create new jobs in the next three months, up four points from October and the highest reading of the year. The last time that hiring plans reached this level was in December 2024.

In November, 21 percent of small business owners cited labor quality as their single most important problem, down six points, erasing most of October’s sudden increase.

Labor costs, reported as the single most important problem by small business owners, remained at 8 percent.

Seasonally adjusted, a net 26 percent of small business owners reported raising compensation in November, unchanged from October. A net 24-percent (seasonally adjusted) plan to raise compensation in the next three months, up five points from October. The last time plans to raise compensation were at this level was in December 2024.

Keep up with the latest California small business news at www.nfib.com. Follow the National Federation of Independent Business on X @NFIB_CA and on Facebook @NFIB.CA.