We extend the Qiu and Wang (2021) dataset on the measure of U.S. listed companies skilled labor risk that is, the risk of failing to attract and retain skilled labor, by the intensity of discussions on this issue in 10-K filings, and examine the effect of skilled labor risk on corporate dividend payout policy. We find that firms significantly reduce dividend payout when faced with skilled labor risk. The negative association between skilled labor risk and dividend payout is more pronounced in turbulent times (such as COVID-19) when future cash flow uncertainty is expected to be high ex ante, and for financially constrained firms. These findings highlight that the inalienability of skilled labor has critical implications for corporate dividend payout policy.