Private sector employment increased by 54,000 jobs in August, as reported by the ADP National Employment Report. The report also indicated that annual pay rose by 4.4 percent year-over-year.
The ADP report, which analyzes anonymized payroll data from over 26 million private-sector employees in the United States, reflects a snapshot of the labor market. According to Dr. Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, “The year started with strong job growth, but that momentum has been whipsawed by uncertainty.” Factors such as labor shortages, cautious consumer behavior, and disruptions from artificial intelligence were mentioned as possible reasons for the hiring slowdown.
In August, the leisure and hospitality sectors, along with construction, showed strong performance despite a general month-over-month slowdown in hiring.
Job growth was distributed as follows:
- Goods-producing: 13,000 jobs
- Service-providing: 42,000 jobs
Regionally, job changes were noted as:
- Northeast: 15,000
- Midwest: 14,000
- South: 4,000
- West: 8,000
Regarding pay insights, annual pay growth remained stable with job-stayers experiencing a 4.4 percent increase, while job-changers saw a higher growth rate of 7.1 percent. Pay changes varied across industries and firm sizes.
This data provides an important overview of employment trends and compensation in the private sector, reflecting both job growth and wage developments amid current economic uncertainties.
Source: ADP National Employment Report