HR Brew // Morning Brew // Update

June 25, 2026

Hey there, HR pros. Looking to supersize your compensation? Becoming a CEO might help, at least in the US, where pay packages worth at least $100 million reached the highest level since 2021 last year.

Most of these packages don’t come close to Elon Musk’s Tesla deal, which could ultimately make him a trillionaire. But as the old adage in corporate governance goes, “Shoot for a trillion, and you’ll land among the millions.”

In today’s edition:

Slow and steady

Legislative lowdown

Stay, stay, stay

—Paige McGlauflin, Courtney Vinopal, Maia Anderson

RECRUITMENT & RETENTION

Hold steady

Photo collage of a "Now Hiring" sign on a green background, but the "Now" is covered with masking tape that someone has scribbled "We

Morning Brew Inc.

Despite an uncertain economy, most employers are staying steady on hiring, a new HR Brew survey suggests.

Holding steady. More than half (64%) of the 200+ people professionals surveyed by HR Brew in June said that their hiring outlook for the second half of 2026 was about the same as that for the first half of the year, while 16% expect to hire more, and 11% expect to hire less. Their responses are reflective of the current labor market, as employers in most sectors have seen little to no job growth on a monthly basis.

Under pressure. While hiring plans seem to be holding steady, some respondents indicated that they are not immune to uncertainty and business change. When asked about factors affecting hiring plans, the largest cohort of respondents said budget changes (45%), followed by changes in organization priorities or structure (33% and 30%, respectively), and economic uncertainty (27%).

It seems the economic issues dominating headlines are having little influence on employers’ hiring plans.

For more on the hiring outlook for the second half of 2026, keep reading here.—PM

From The Crew

Build. Back. Follow.

Every founder faces a moment they weren't prepared for. The pivot that wasn't working. The investor who walked. The hire that broke the culture. Founder Brew exists for those moments. Each issue brings the real decisions, the trade-offs, and the hard lessons from builders who've been there.

Whether you're scaling, fundraising, or just figuring out what comes next, this is the newsletter for you. Subscribe today.

COMPLIANCE

Legislative lowdown

Francis Scialabba

Posting roles that go unfilled is set to become harder in the state of New York.

New York state lawmakers passed a bill on June 2 seeking to limit “ghost jobs,” which refer to advertisements for positions that don’t really exist.

Should New York Gov. Kathy Hochul sign the bill into law, employers with 100 or more workers will have to include language in job postings specifying if, and when, they intend to fill an advertised position.

The legislation is intended to crack down a recruiting practice that’s “dishonest and exploitative,” New York State Sen. Michael Gianaris, who sponsored the bill, wrote in a post on X.

For more on this and other legislation to crack down on ghost jobs, keep reading here.—CV

RECRUITMENT & RETENTION

Please don’t go

Leslie Snavely

The US has faced healthcare worker shortages for years, and the trend is only projected to get worse.

Hospitals have increasingly turned to staffing agencies in recent years as they seek to fill in workforce gaps. CHG Healthcare, which is focused primarily on locum tenen (meaning temporary) physicians, is one of the largest healthcare staffing firms in the US, with more than 4,000 employees and an estimated $2.8 billion in revenue in 2024, according to Staffing Industry Analysts.

Leslie Snavely, who became CHG’s president in 2023 and CEO in 2024, told Healthcare Brew the company aims to combat shortages and keep physicians in the field of medicine for as long as possible.

For more on how CHG Healthcare is combatting burnout and staffing shortages, keep reading on Healthcare Brew.—MA

WORK PERKS

A desktop computer plugged into a green couch.

Francis Scialabba

Today’s top HR reads.

Stat: The ideological tilt of your field may have an impact on pay equity, a recent analysis of 1.5 million employees suggests. Between 1994 and 2023, women in liberal fields earned 13% less than comparable men, while those in conservative fields earned 22% less. (Academy of Management Insights)

Quote: “Avoiding Word Cup traffic is a perfect use case of remote work.”—Emma Harrington, a University of Virginia economist who studies remote work, said the international soccer tournament currently taking place across North America merits work-from-home arrangements (Bloomberg)

Read: Software coders are struggling to keep up with AI’s rapid pace of development, and some are so anxious about it they’re mulling a move to sales or support roles. (Business Insider)

JOBS

More focus, less fluff. CollabWORK filters out the noise and delivers jobs that actually match what HR Brew readers are looking for. Click here to see the full board of curated roles.

SHARE THE BREW

Share the Brew, watch your referral count climb, and unlock brag-worthy swag.

Your friends get smarter. You get rewarded. Win-win.

Your referral count: 0

Click to Share

Or copy & paste your referral link to others:
hr-brew.com/r/?kid=12b4b9db

Written by Paige McGlauflin, Courtney Vinopal, and Maia Anderson

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here.

Get smarter in just 5 minutes

Business News: Morning Brew
Tech & AI News: Tech Brew
Markets News: Brew Markets
Real Estate News: The Playbook
Money & Career: Bossy

Take The Brew to work

Interested in podcasts?

Check out People Person on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

ADVERTISE // CAREERS // SHOP // FAQ

Update your email preferences or unsubscribe .
View our privacy policy .

Copyright © 2026 Morning Brew Inc. All rights reserved.
22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011

☕️ Halftime adjustments