Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, INDUSTRY NEWS, TRENDS—Employers increasingly favor experienced workers as entry-level opportunities shrink, report finds, (Aug 13, 2026)

By WK Editorial Staff

Postings for senior-level positions rose sharply during the past year, Indeed Hiring Lab found.

A growing divide is emerging in the U.S. labor market as employers increasingly seek experienced talent while scaling back opportunities for workers at the beginning of their careers, according to a recent report from Indeed Hiring Lab.

The report, The Labor Market Is Tilting Toward Seniority, finds that job postings for senior-level positions rose sharply during the past year, even as entry-level and mid-level opportunities remained subdued. Researchers say the trend could create lasting challenges for recent graduates and younger workers trying to establish careers in a labor market that increasingly rewards experience.

Senior-level job postings were up 14.7 percent in May 2026 compared with the same month a year earlier, according to Indeed data. When compared with January 2025 levels, postings for senior roles increased 13.5 percent, while mid-level postings fell 6.7 percent and entry-level openings declined 6.3 percent. Entry-level postings were also down 7.5 percent year over year in May, extending a downward trend that has persisted since job openings peaked during the post-pandemic hiring boom in 2022.

Experience prioritized. The findings suggest employers are prioritizing workers who can contribute immediately with minimal training and supervision, a notable shift from the labor shortages that characterized much of the post-pandemic recovery. While demand for experienced talent has strengthened, opportunities for less experienced workers have become increasingly scarce.

“Over the past year, recent graduates have created profiles to search for jobs on Indeed in droves,” the authors wrote. “Employers might be more interested in hiring their parents.”

Despite the recent surge, senior-level jobs still represent a relatively small share of overall hiring activity. Indeed estimates that about 14 percent of job postings nationwide are for senior-level positions, compared with 46 percent for entry-level jobs and 40 percent for mid-level roles. However, the rapid growth in senior hiring compared with the decline in entry-level opportunities highlights a meaningful shift in employer preferences.

Why the change? The report points to a variety of possible explanations for the changing hiring landscape. Some observers have argued that advances in artificial intelligence are reducing demand for junior workers, particularly in knowledge-based professions. Others have linked early-career hiring challenges to the rise of remote work, which can reduce opportunities for mentorship and training, or to employers' efforts to adjust staffing levels after aggressive hiring during the pandemic-era labor shortage. Indeed researchers note that multiple factors may be contributing to weaker demand for entry-level workers.

Some sectors more than others. The impact of the trend varies significantly across industries.

Software development stands out as the sector most heavily focused on experienced talent. Nearly 70 percent of software development job postings were classified as senior-level positions during the first quarter of 2026, the highest share among occupations analyzed by Indeed. Entry-level positions accounted for just 4.5 percent of software development postings, underscoring the limited opportunities available to newcomers seeking to enter the technology field.

By contrast, sectors such as personal care and home health remain heavily concentrated in entry-level hiring. More than 91 percent of job postings in that field were classified as entry level during the first quarter of the year, reflecting ongoing demand for frontline and hands-on workers. Driving occupations represented the opposite end of the seniority spectrum, with senior-level roles accounting for just 0.5 percent of postings.

AI adoption, remote work. Indeed's analysis suggests that industries most affected by AI adoption and remote work tend to have smaller shares of entry-level jobs. Technology and other professional occupations increasingly favor experienced workers, while sectors requiring physical presence, including healthcare, retail and food service, continue to generate larger numbers of opportunities for less experienced candidates.

The shift has not occurred uniformly. In retail, the share of entry-level postings increased by 4.4 percentage points between 2019 and 2025. Healthcare moved in the opposite direction, with entry-level postings declining by 5.2 percentage points during the same period. In technology, entry-level opportunities fell only modestly, but because the sector already had a small proportion of beginner-friendly positions, even slight declines may have significant consequences for aspiring workers. Meanwhile, technology's increase in senior-level hiring appears to have come primarily at the expense of mid-level positions, which declined by 7.7 percentage points over the period.

Food service has proven to be an exception. Entry-level roles still account for more than 80 percent of job postings in the sector, and the distribution of opportunities across seniority levels has remained relatively stable since 2019.

Methodology. To conduct the analysis, Indeed introduced a new methodology for classifying jobs by seniority. Rather than relying on job titles or stated years of experience, the company's system evaluates job responsibilities, management duties, education requirements, certifications and other factors to determine whether a posting is entry-level, mid-level or senior-level. According to Indeed, the classification system covers more than 99 percent of job postings and achieved approximately 95 percent accuracy during manual review testing.

Researchers warn that the consequences of reduced entry-level hiring could extend well beyond today's graduates. Economic research has shown that workers who enter the labor market during weak hiring periods often experience lower earnings for years afterward. The report also notes that entry-level workers are more likely to be paid hourly wages, a category that has recently experienced slower pay growth than salaried positions.

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