Have labor markets worked recently the way the textbook says they work?

See Small Businesses Find Some Relief From Hiring Woes (has the MVP study) by Ruth Simon of The WSJ. Excerpts: 

"Small-business owners say it is getting easier to hire workers and keep them around, in what they hope is a sign that the worst of their labor problems are behind them.  

The U.S. job market remains historically tight. But December marked the first time since July where more small-business owners said in a survey for The Wall Street Journal that they found it easier—rather than harder—to find workers. 

Some entrepreneurs say steps such as raising pay, adding apprenticeship programs and rewriting job ads are starting to pay off. Others report an increase in applicants as competitors pull back on hiring or begin layoffs."

"Eighty-one percent of small-business owners reported raising wages in response to labor-market challenges, according to a survey conducted by Vistage Worldwide Inc."

We expect price to rise when there is a shortage. A shortage is when price is less than the equilibrium price and quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied. This puts upward pressure on price and in this case the price of labor is wages.