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Flat August payrolls say little about whether your next nurse hire gets easier
Skilled Nursing News reported that Bureau of Labor Statistics data, released on a Friday in early September 2026, showed seasonally adjusted skilled nursing employment edging from 1.5901 million in July to 1.5902 million in August, a gain of 100 jobs. Nursing and residential care facilities overall stood at 3.496 million, down 1,800. July had been stronger, with 3,200 added in skilled nursing. Against August 2025 (1.5574 million), employment is up roughly 32,800 jobs, or 2.1%. Healthcare as a whole added 13,000 jobs, against a trailing average of 32,000 a month. Total nonfarm payrolls rose 162,000, against an average of 31,000.
Does a 100-job gain mean skilled nursing hiring has stalled?
Not necessarily. A change of 100 on a base of 1.5901 million is effectively zero, and it says nothing about hiring, turnover or whether the roles filled are nursing roles.
The monthly figure is a net number. A facility group can hire heavily and lose almost as many to turnover, and the series will still show near zero. BLS monthly estimates are also routinely revised, so read July's 3,200 and August's 100 as one noisy signal.
The steadier reading is annual: 2.1% more people on skilled nursing payrolls than a year ago. That is growth, but the count doesn't separate nurses from aides, or from the DON and ADON seats you recruit for.
Where is healthcare hiring going instead?
Home health and hospitals. Healthcare added 13,000 jobs in August; home health services added 11,000 and hospitals 8,000, while residential intellectual and developmental disability, mental health and substance abuse facilities lost 1,200.
Those two leaders alone exceed the 13,000 total, so other corners of healthcare shed jobs. Skilled nursing gained 100 while its wider category fell 1,800. Assisted living operators should check their own line. BLS groups them with continuing care retirement communities, and the coverage cites only July, when that group added 1,800.
Meanwhile the broader economy accelerated. Healthcare's trailing monthly average of 32,000 slightly beat the whole economy's 31,000. In August the economy added 162,000 and healthcare 13,000. If other employers are hiring harder, aides and nurses may have more options. The coverage offers no evidence on wages or on where people went.
What should I ask my recruiter or staffing firm?
Ask for local numbers. A BLS headcount isn't vacancy, turnover or agency usage, so a recruiter or staffing firm citing it to claim nurse supply is easing should show data from your market.
Request time-to-fill for RN, ADON and DON roles in your state, agency hours against last year, and turnover. Ask who defined each metric and over what period. The coverage gives no margin of error and doesn't say how contract labour is treated.
Earlier items on this site, such as AMN Healthcare's share price, looked at the staffing-vendor side. This is payroll data. The two needn't agree, and neither measures your building.
Frequently asked questions
Does this cover DON and ADON hiring?
No. The figures are industry-wide employment counts with no occupational split, so they say nothing about nursing leadership vacancies or pay.
Should one month's number change my hiring plans?
Probably not. Skilled nursing's 2.1% annual rise is the steadier signal. Test your plans against your own time-to-fill and turnover instead.
Sources: Skilled Nursing News, reporting Bureau of Labor Statistics data.