Addressing the Significant Shortage in the Profession Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are in high demand throughout the United States. The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that the United States will need "approximately 141,400 speech-language pathologists during the year 2018 to meet the profession's growing need and to replace retiring speech-language pathologists" (2011, p. 2). . The demand for qualified professionals in the sector continues to increase year on year. According to the BLS Handbook on Employment Outlook, 2011-2012 edition, “employment in the profession is projected to increase 19 percent over the next decade” (p. 2). A report published in 2008 by the American Association for Employment in Education (AAEE) reported that “speech-language pathologists are ranked 14th in the nation for fields with a substantial number of vacancies compared to other areas of education” (p. 8). In the state of Nebraska, the U.S. Department of Education has listed speech-language pathology as an “area of ​​significant teacher shortage” (2011, p. 58). Recruiting and retaining qualified professionals has impacted school districts across the nation. The frustrations of many speech-language pathologists are similar: job dissatisfaction, lack of sufficient compensation, and excessive workloads contribute to the professional shortage. Research suggests that “lack of recognition, few promotion opportunities, excessive paperwork, loss of autonomy, lack of supplies, low pay, and stressful interpersonal interactions contributed to teachers' decisions to leave school” (Blood, Ridenour, Thomas, Qualls, & Hammer, 2002, p. 283). Job satisfaction “is the terminology used to describe whether employees are happy and content and fulfilling their wants and needs at work” (Heathfield, n.d., para. 1). Many speech pathologists have difficulty ... middle of paper ... d, S. (nd) Employee satisfaction. Retrieved November 26, 2011, from http://humanresources.about.com/od/employeesurvey1/g/employee_satisfy.htm.Palacio, M. (2001). Successful strategies for addressing workload issues. Advance for Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists, February 2001. Retrieved from http://speech-lingual-pathology-audiology.advanceweb.com/Article/Successful-Strategies-for-Addressing-Caseload-Issues.aspx.“Psychosocial Support.” (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2011, from http://www.ovcsupport.net/s/index.php?i=59.US Department of Education. (2011). National list of teacher shortage areas. Retrieved November 26, 2011, from http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/pol/tsa.pdf. United States Department of Labor (2011). Handbook on employment prospects. Retrieved November 22, 2011, from http://www.bls.gov/oco/pdf/ocos099.pdf .