The U.S. labor market began 2026 on shaky ground, with hiring rates sinking to pandemic-era lows. However, a shift appears underway: American businesses are gearing up to expand their workforces for the remainder of the year, with particular demand in technology, healthcare, and human resources.

Approximately 66% of U.S. employers intend to ramp up permanent hiring in the second half of 2026, according to recent data from staffing firm Robert Half. That figure marks an increase from the 60% who reported similar plans in the first half of the year and a more substantial rise from 57% one year ago. Surveys of hiring intentions, however, can diverge from realized payroll gains, and the first half of 2026 illustrated that gap: even with 60% of employers planning expansions, monthly job creation remained subdued through the spring.

An additional 56% of employers say they plan to bring on contract talent to access specialized skills that have been scarce. Nearly half of surveyed companies reported having to cancel projects due to a skills gap, suggesting that further delays in hiring are no longer viable.

Michelle Reisdorf, district director at Robert Half, told Fortune that employers have reached a point where prolonging the hiring process "isn't really an option" anymore.

"They have business priorities to move forward," Reisdorf said. "They're not hiring just to add headcount, but they are willing to invest in talent for roles that directly support those goals."

Most Sought-After Roles for the Remainder of 2026

• Technology (78%)
• Healthcare (75%)
• Finance and accounting (74%)
• Marketing and creative (65%)
• Legal (58%)
• Human resources (56%)
• Administration and customer support (52%)

Technology professionals lead employer wish lists at 78%, followed by healthcare specialists at 75%, and finance and accounting at 74%. Marketing and creative roles come in at 65%, while legal stands at 58%. The top-ranked sectors reflect long-running structural trends: technology demand has been sustained by enterprise digital transformation and the integration of AI tools, which require developers, data specialists, and cybersecurity professionals even as automation reshapes other functions. Healthcare hiring, meanwhile, is underpinned by the steady growth of the U.S. population aged 65 and older, which continues to intensify demand for clinical and administrative staff. Notably, despite some companies reducing support roles amid AI-driven efficiencies, demand remains strong for human resources professionals (56%) and administrative and customer support staff (52%).

As employers move to backfill positions and recruit specialists to keep critical projects on track, they report that the most difficult skills to source are industry-specific knowledge (47%), software proficiency (42%), and leadership capabilities (40%).

A Challenging Landscape for Job Seekers

The hiring uptick comes against a backdrop of persistent labor market difficulties. In June, U.S. employers added just 57,000 open roles—less than half of the previous month's total—as economic uncertainty persisted.

This year's slowdown follows a punishing 2025, during which employers announced 1.2 million job cuts, a 58% increase from approximately 760,000 layoffs in 2024, according to a 2026 report from employment consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas. The 2025 reductions represented the highest level of workforce cuts since 2020 and rivaled the 2008 financial crisis, when 1.22 million positions were eliminated.

The prolonged downturn has eroded worker confidence. The average perceived probability of finding a job after losing one's current position fell to 43.1% in December 2025, a decline of 4.2 percentage points from the prior year, according to 2026 data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That marks a record low since the survey began tracking the metric in 2013.

Vulnerable demographics are driving the diminished expectations. Workers earning less than six figures, those without college degrees, and baby boomers over 60—many on the cusp of retirement—report the lowest confidence levels in the current job search environment.

"Americans don't feel like the current job market is working for them," Daniel Zhao, chief economist at employment site Glassdoor, told Fortune earlier this year. "Workers on the lower end of the income spectrum or without a college degree are often more susceptible to the swings of the business cycle, so it's natural for them to be more concerned about signs of an economic slowdown."

The job search itself has grown increasingly arduous. According to a 2025 Wall Street Journal analysis, Gen Zers and millennials between 25 and 34 faced an average unemployment duration of 19 weeks (nearly five months), while Gen Xers and baby boomers aged 55 to 64 were unemployed for an average of 26 weeks (over half a year). Among Gen Xers and baby boomers who experienced at least one layoff, 24% were unable to secure a new position. Even when older workers did find new opportunities, 11% were compelled to accept a pay cut.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.