By Katie Merritt, Senior Research and Data Manager, Robert Half
Economic uncertainty continues into the second half of 2026. While recent labor market data points to some improvement, the employment landscape remains characterized by limited hiring and relatively few layoffs. That dynamic can make it harder for unemployed workers to find jobs, with the median duration of unemployment reaching nearly three months (11.4 weeks), government data shows.
Still, the BLS reports that the U.S. added 162,000 jobs in August 2026, an improvement from recent reports. Robert Half’s workplace research also shows that employers in the United States still need to fill critical roles. Two in three managers (66%) at companies said they plan to add new permanent positions to their workforce in the second half of this year, up from 57% this time last year.
This post takes a deeper dive into research behind the latest edition of the Demand for Skilled Talent report, highlighting key industries expected to recruit talent in the second half of 2026 and the jobs expected to be in high demand.
What Industries Are Hiring Right Now?
What are the industries with the most job openings?
Business and professional services, manufacturing and distribution, healthcare, financial services and consumer products recorded the highest job posting volumes in the first half of 2026 among the industries Robert Half tracks. Business and professional services led with 756,700 postings, followed by manufacturing and distribution with 183,000 and healthcare with 161,900.
Together, these five industries contributed over 1.3 million new positions to the U.S. economy in the first half of 2026 (+45,700 more positions than the first six months of 2025). Business and professional services increased by 46,000 postings year over year, while manufacturing and distribution added 16,300 and healthcare was essentially flat. Here is a deeper dive into hiring trends in industries with the most job openings.
Business and professional services hiring trends
Business and professional services had the most job postings in the first half of 2026, with 756,700 postings, representing 42% of total demand across the tracked industries. Volume increased by 46,000 postings (6.5%) year over year.
Thirty-three percent of job openings in business and professional services were in tech and IT, 27% were in administrative and customer support, and 24% were in finance and accounting.
Here’s a look at some of the top jobs U.S. employers were recruiting for in the first half of 2026:
Tech and IT
Software engineer (+62,200 jobs)Systems engineer (+11,100 jobs)Systems administrator (+10,400 jobs)Network/cloud engineer (+10,000 jobs)
Administrative and customer support
Project manager (+46,800 jobs)Customer service specialist (+33,700 jobs)Administrative assistant (+30,600 jobs)Executive assistant (+ 15,500 jobs)
Finance and accounting
Senior accountant (+10,600 jobs)Staff accountant (+9,500 jobs)Tax manager (+8,800 jobs)Business analyst (+8,500 jobs)Accounting specialist (+7,100 jobs)
Consumer products hiring trends
Consumer products was still the fifth-largest industry contributing to the job market in the first half of 2026, with 102,633 openings. It made up 6% of the total demand across tracked industries, while its volume declined by 5,315 postings year over year. Administrative and customer support roles made up 57% of the new professional openings within this industry, totaling nearly 58,100jobs. Prominent roles in the consumer products space included:
Customer service specialist (+30,300 jobs)Software engineer (+5,000 jobs)Customer service manager (+5,100 jobs)Administrative assistant (+3,000 jobs)Customer experience specialist (+1,700 jobs)
Education services hiring trends
Universities and educational organizations recruited talent for 41,600 job openings in the United States in the first half of 2026. Most roles were in administrative and customer support (48%), followed by finance and accounting (28%), and tech and IT (23%). The unemployment rate in education services in 2025 was 2.8% and 3.2% in Q2 2026. In the first six months of 2026, the most in-demand jobs in this industry included:
Administrative assistant (+5,600 jobs)Executive assistant (+1,600 jobs)Software engineer (+1,200 jobs)Front desk coordinator (+1,200 jobs)
Financial services hiring trends
Employers in the financial services industry posted 138,400jobs in the first half of 2026, accounting for 8% of total posted jobs across tracked industries. However, its volume declined by 11,500 jobs year over year.
In this industry, 33% of the jobs were in tech and IT, while 27% were in finance and accounting, and 26% were in administrative and customer support departments. The unemployment rate for financial services was 2.3% in 2025 and 2.4% in Q2 2026. The most in-demand tech and IT jobs in the financial services industry included:
Software engineer (+ 11,700 jobs)Product manager (+2,900 jobs)Data engineer (+1,800 jobs)Full stack developer (+1,500 jobs)
The most in-demand finance and accounting jobs in the financial services industry included:
Loan processor (+2,800 jobs)Mortgage underwriter (+3,300 jobs)Senior business analyst (+2,600 jobs)Senior financial analyst (+2,000 jobs)Business analyst (+1,700 jobs)
Government and public sector hiring trends
Government and public sector employers added 34,600 jobs in the U.S. in the first half of 2026, representing 2% of total job postings across tracked industries. Most openings were in administrative and customer support (32%), followed by finance and accounting (28%) and tech and IT (25%). The most in-demand jobs in this sector included administrative assistants (+3,900 jobs) and IT director (+ 1,600 jobs).
Healthcare hiring trends
Among the professional roles that Robert Half places in the healthcare industry, there were more than 161,900 new job openings added in the U.S. in the first half of 2026. The bulk of these jobs were administrative (47%), including:
Receptionist (+17,900 jobs) Front desk coordinator (+11,600 jobs) Administrative assistant (+11,100 jobs) Office manager (+7,900 jobs) Customer service representative (+7,000 jobs) Medical front desk coordinator (+5,800 jobs) Patient access/services specialist (+5,300 jobs) Medical billing specialist (+4,700 jobs)
Manufacturing hiring trends
The manufacturing industry added more than 183,000 new job openings in the U.S. during the first half of 2026. These jobs were primarily in companies’ tech and IT (36%), administrative and customer support (30%), and finance and accounting (21%) departments.
In-demand roles in this industry included:
Software engineer (+22,000 jobs)Customer service representative (+19,600 jobs)Project manager (+8,200 jobs)Systems engineer (+5,600 jobs)Administrative assistant (+5,200 jobs)Customer service manager (+4,800 jobs)Product support specialist (+3,700 jobs)
Tech and IT hiring trends
The tech and IT industry posted 75,000 jobs in the first half of 2026, declined 30% year over year, the steepest decrease among the tracked industries. The job posting were primarily in companies’ tech and IT (45%), marketing and creative (19%), and administrative and customer support departments (17%).
The following roles were especially high in demand in the tech and IT industry:
Software engineer (+13,000 jobs)Project manager (+2,700 jobs)Product manager (+2,500 jobs)Customer service representative (+2,200 jobs)ML engineer (+2,000 jobs)Network/cloud engineer (+1,800 jobs)Product marketing manager (+1,700 jobs)Data engineer (+1,500 jobs)Administrative assistant (+1,100 jobs)Product support specialist (+1,100 jobs)Systems engineer (+1,000 jobs)
Get more insights in Robert Half’s Demand for Skilled Talent report
View the report
As to the question, “What industries are hiring right now?” The answer is many. However, Robert Half’s research for our Demand for Skilled Talent report suggests many employers will likely struggle to meet their hiring goals in the months ahead.
For tips on how to overcome hiring challenges in the current labor market, plus more data on U.S. hiring and employment trends in 2026, read the full Demand for Skilled Talent report.
Methodology
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Industry calculations are based on job postings provided by Textkernel. Positions are categorized into more than 425 job titles within Robert Half’s 2026 Salary Guide using a proprietary mapping methodology that employs state-of-the-art large language models. This dataset includes roles across the finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal, administrative and customer support, human resources, and healthcare support professions.
