The corporate strategy for the upcoming year is clear: Don’t hire. In order to handle more work, businesses intend to remain lean through 2026 and rely more on technology. Employers like e-commerce platform Shopify and Chime Financial have already committed to maintaining relatively flat staffing levels, and forecasters at the employment website Indeed predict very little hiring growth in 2026.
This month, the Yale School of Management hosted a meeting of CEOs in Midtown Manhattan, where the majority of executives showed caution. Just one-third of executives surveyed said they anticipated hiring next year, compared to 66% who said they intended to either lay off employees or keep their current workforce.
Hiring is not on many companies 2026 agenda
“You’re going to see a lot of wait and see,” said Chris Layden, chief executive of staffing company Kelly Services. “Some of the looming uncertainty will mean that we’re going to continue to see an investment in capital over people.”
For months, employers have shown little desire to hire. In November, the unemployment rate reached its highest point in four years at 4.6%. The white-collar job market has started to stagnate, despite the United States adding jobs in industries like healthcare and education in 2025. In recent months, major corporations like Amazon.com, Verizon, Target, and United Parcel Service have eliminated white-collar jobs, which has increased employee anxiety.
Businesses give a number of explanations for why they are reluctant to hire more employees. Many executives think artificial intelligence can now handle more tasks within large organizations, and economic uncertainty is a major concern. Others admit that they overhired following the pandemic and are still making amends.
“We’re close to zero job growth. That’s not a healthy labor market,” Federal Reserve governor Christopher Waller said at the Yale summit. “When I go around and talk to CEOs around the country, everybody’s telling me, ‘Look, we’re not hiring because we’re waiting to try to figure out what happens with AI. What jobs can we replace? What jobs do we don’t?’”
Featured Image Credit: Tima Miroshnichenko; Pexels: Thank you!
