The American Staffing Association premiered the ASA Skills Gap Index, which tracks the number of hardest-to-fill occupations in the U.S., during Staffing World^®, the association’s annual convention and expo. The index identified 207 occupations as hard to fill, and a Top 10 list of most difficult positions to fill was released.

“The ASA Skills Gap Index quantifies the severity of the skills shortage in America,” said Richard Wahlquist, ASA president and chief executive officer. “These new U.S. skills gap data will be used by economists, journalists, government officials, and, most important, staffing firms as they work with clients to develop workforce solutions and devise effective talent acquisition strategies.”

The skills gap index was developed by ASA using the hiring indicator developed by ASA corporate partner CareerBuilder. It measures the level of difficulty (on a scale of one to 100) to recruit for a specific occupation based on demand, supply of active candidates, and total population working in it. ASA will update the index quarterly.