Private-Sector Hiring Rebounds as September Adds 90,000 Jobs

The uptick in hiring was primarily driven by the education, health care, leisure, and hospitality sectors, which collectively helped offset losses elsewhere. Despite the overall growth, specific industries faced headwinds; financial activities shed 16,000 positions, while professional and business services saw a decline of 11,000 jobs. Regionally, the Northeast led the national performance by adding 56,000 jobs, a stark contrast to more modest gains in other parts of the country.

Dr. Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, characterized the data as a strong showing for the labor market. Beyond the raw employment numbers, the report highlighted persistent wage pressure. Job-changers saw their base pay increase by 4.8%, while those who remained in their current roles received a 3.0% raise. These figures reflect a high-frequency snapshot of the U.S. labor market, derived from anonymized payroll data covering over 26 million employees.