Private companies added 63,000 new jobs in February, a sizable increase over January, the ADP National Employment Report released Wednesday said. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo
Private companies added 63,000 new jobs in February, a sizable increase over January, the ADP National Employment Report released Wednesday said.
ADP Research reports that pay also increased on a year-to-year basis, up 4.5% in February. It revised its new jobs figures for January down, cutting it in half from 22,000 to 11,000.
Job gains outpaced the Dow Jones estimate of 48,000.
“We’ve seen an increase in hiring and pay gains remain solid, especially for job-stayers,” said Dr. Nela Richardson, chief economist for ADP. “But with hiring concentrated in only a few sectors, our data shows no widespread pay benefit from changing jobs. In fact, the pay premium for switching employers hit a record low in February.”
Small businesses with less than 20 employees added 58,000 of the new jobs in February.
Job growth was the greatest in the service industry, totaling 47,000 new jobs. Education and health services added 58,000 jobs, offsetting 30,000 jobs lost in professional and business services.
There were 16,000 goods-producing jobs added, bolstered by 19,000 in construction while manufacturing lost 5,000.
The southern region of the United States saw the largest share of new jobs added for the month, up 37,000. The Midwest was the only region to post a net loss, down 4,000 jobs.
This week in Washington
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is sworn-in during a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing on Minnesota’s welfare fraud scandal at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. The hearing marks Walz first official appear in the federal probe examining the alleged misuse of federal funds intended for Minnesota social services and Medicaid programs. Photo by Annabelle Gordon/UPI | License Photo
