By Stephen Nakrosis 
 

More small-business owners in the U.S. plan to raise compensation than at any time since December 1989, the National Federation of Independent Businesses said Thursday.

The NFIB, in its monthly jobs report for December, said 30% of small-business owners said they raised compensation and 26% said they intend to do so in coming months.

The NFIB also said 26% of members surveyed reported finding qualified workers remains their top issue. In the construction sector, 67% of respondents said there were "few or no qualified applicants," while 57% of respondents in manufacturing and 54% in retail reported the same.

"The labor shortage continues to hinder the productivity of small businesses," said NFIB's Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. "The retail industry is facing compensation pressures due to labor shortages, but also higher minimum wage laws in many parts and wage competition with large firms."

--Write to Stephen Nakrosis at stephen.nakrosis@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 05, 2019 13:36 ET (18:36 GMT)