Quarterly Talent Intelligence Report - Q3 2026

Quarterly Talent Intelligence KEY TAKEAWAYS Three things every HR leader should know heading into Q4 The labor market is loosening, but not where you need it National unemployment rose to 4.39% in June, up from 3.99% in April, but skilled roles on the plant floor and in the office are still slow to fill. Employers are leaning on staffing partners, which posted roughly one in every ten U.S. job listings in July and August. More applicants doesn’t necessarily mean a faster search. It can just mean more people to sort through. Maintenance technicians are the pressure point on the plant floor Maintenance technicians were the most posted title in manufacturing this quarter, from over 2,400 companies, and take 24 days to fill against a 15-day national median. Every week that seat sits open is a week of downtime risk, so build the pipeline before the vacancy. In law firms, support roles are as slow to fill as attorneys Legal assistants and legal secretaries take 29 days to fill, the same as associate attorneys. Plan support hires on a two-week timeline and you will be short-staffed for a month.

Roles in Demand: What the Market Is Competing For Posting volume and average days to fill sourced from Lightcast Q3 2026. The full report includes the top five roles in each of five verticals, with planning guidance for each. Vertical Role National postings Avg. days to fill Demand MFG / TRANSPORT CDL-A Truck Drivers (all types) 88,483 22 to 30 days Very high Forklift Operators 5,922 21 days High SKILLED TRADES Maintenance Technicians 6,455 24 days High Machine Operators 4,747 21 days High ENGINEERING Electrical Engineers 2,028 21 days High Project Managers 1,956 17 days High PROFESSIONAL Tax Professionals 3,879 10 days Very high Tax Associates 3,332 11 days High LEGAL Associate Attorneys 1,514 29 days Very high Legal Assistants 1,022 29 days Very high WANT THE FULL PICTURE The complete report goes deeper on every section. Top 5 roles per vertical Demand breakdown across all five verticals, with planning guidance written for each role. Pay benchmarks by role Median advertised pay for 12 in-demand roles, compared with Eastridge placement data. Detailed market analysis Unemployment, participation, retirement, and layoff trends, and what each means for your Q4 hiring. Get your free custom labor market report. Eastridge will benchmark your open roles against current market data for your geography, industry, and job families at no cost. Request Yours Now! Data sources: Lightcast Q3 2026 Data Set (lightcast.io). Unique job postings within each vertical's industries, United States, June 29 to September 26, 2026. Avg. days to fill is median posting duration. All figures are for informational purposes only.