ADP’s Employment Report showed that private payrolls were weaker than forecasted in September with just 89,000 jobs created, marking the slowest pace of growth since January 2021. While job gains were reported among small and mid-sized businesses, large businesses with 500+ employees shed 83,000 jobs. Among the various sectors, leisure and hospitality was by far the strongest, adding 92,000 jobs, though these gains were offset by losses seen in manufacturing, trade/transportation/utilities, and professional/business services.
What’s the bottom line? “We are seeing a steepening decline in jobs this month,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist for ADP. “Additionally, we are seeing a steady decline in wages in the past 12 months.” On that note, annual pay for job stayers increased 5.9% and job changers saw an average increase of 9.0%. These figures have cooled considerably from last year’s highs of 8% for job stayers and 16% for job changers, which is significant because it suggests lower wage-pressured inflation.
