A lack of experience is the top reason jobs go unfilled, cited by one-third of employers surveyed by Express Employment Professionals. Lack of available applicants followed.

“American businesses are hiring, or at least they want to,” said Express Employment CEO Bob Funk. “Almost two-thirds of respondents in our survey either don’t have enough applicants or don’t have applicants with the right experience.”

The survey asked, “What is the primary reason that your open jobs are not filled?”

• Lack of experience: 33%
• Lack of available applicants: 29%
• I have all my positions filled: 26%
• Lack of hard skills: 17%
• Lack of soft skills: 13%
• Other: 11%
• Not enough pay offered: 10%
• Client location: 10%
• Unwilling to work part-time or temporary roles: 6%
• Undesirable client image or reputation: 1%

“The labor market is tightening — both because more people are going back to work and because we have so many still on the sidelines. That makes it hard to find talent,” Funk said. “Many people just don’t realize how many job openings are out there; the recurring theme, though, is the mismatch between job seekers and available jobs.”

The survey of 1,951 businesses covers hiring trends for the first quarter of 2017. The respondents are current and former clients of Express Employment Professionals.