Nearly three-quarters of US companies, 73 percent, expect an increase in their demand for “middle-skills” jobs – those that generally require more than a high school diploma but less than a four-year degree – over the next few years, according to new research from Accenture (NYSE:ACN). Additionally, 56 percent of those surveyed struggle to find people with the qualifications to fill existing middle-skills vacancies.

“The majority of US employers across many business sectors are having great difficulty filling middle-skills positions, despite the fact that unemployment and under-employment remain a challenge for many Americans,” said David Smith, senior managing director Accenture Strategy, Talent & Organization. “Our research provides employers with tangible and practical advice about how to address the underlying issues that contribute to the skills gap and how to improve their processes to source, develop, deploy and retain middle-skills talent.”

According to survey participants, hard-to-fill positions included:

• Engineering tech (mining/utilities): 39 percent
• Sales rep (info/telecom): 34 percent
• Nursing assistant (healthcare): 29 percent
• Network admin. (across all industries): 27 percent
• Computer support specialist (across all industries): 21 percent

The Accenture Middle Skills Survey was conducted in 2014 with more than 800 US human resources executives across 18 industries.