Private sector employment in the U.S. increased by much less than expected in the month of August, according to a report released by payroll processor ADP on Wednesday.
ADP said private sector employment climbed by 374,000 jobs in August after rising by a downwardly revised 326,000 jobs in July.
Economists had expected employment to jump by 613,000 jobs compared to the addition of 330,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
"The Delta variant of COVID-19 appears to have dented the job market recovery," said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics. "Job growth remains strong, but well off the pace of recent months."
Service providers continued to lead the job growth in August, with employment in the sector climbing by 329,000 jobs. Employment in the leisure/hospitality industry saw a notable increase of 201,000 jobs.
ADP said employment in the goods-producing sector also rose by 45,000 jobs during the month, partly reflecting the addition of 30,000 construction jobs.
The report also showed small businesses added 86,000 jobs, while employment at large and midsized businesses increased by 138,000 jobs and 149,000 jobs, respectively.
"Our data, which represents all workers on a company's payroll, has highlighted a downshift in the labor market recovery," said ADP chief economist Nela Richardson. "We have seen a decline in new hires, following significant job growth from the first half of the year."
She added, "Despite the slowdown, job gains are approaching 4 million this year, yet still 7 million jobs short of pre-COVID-19 levels."
On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly jobs report, which includes both public and private sector jobs.
Economists currently expect employment to jump by 750,000 jobs in August after surging by 943,000 jobs in July. The unemployment rate is expected to dip to 5.2 percent from 5.4 percent.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Economic News
What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
December 26, 2025 08:42 ET Third quarter economic growth data from some major economies including the U.S. were the main news in this holiday shortened week. GDP growth and industrial production data from the U.S. helped to boost morale, while the consumer confidence survey results were less upbeat. In Europe, the quarterly economic growth data from the U.K. drew attention, while the minutes of the Australian central bank’s latest policy session was in focus in Asia.