U.S. private-sector job creation rebounded in September, adding 90,000 new jobs following a three-month slowdown, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report produced by ADP Research in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab.
Alongside the uptick in hiring, wage growth remained steady, with base pay rising 3.2% year-over-year and gross pay increasing 4.7%.
“It’s a strong report,” Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, said. “After a three-month slowdown, job creation rebounded and pay growth remained solid.”
Key sector and regional highlights
Hiring acceleration was led primarily by service-providing sectors, while goods-producing industries also posted solid gains:
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Service-Providing Sectors (Total +59,000): Growth was overwhelmingly driven by Education and Health Services (+55,000) and Leisure and Hospitality (+22,000). Conversely, weaknesses were observed in Financial Activities (-16,000) and Professional and Business Services (-11,000).
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Goods-Producing Sectors (Total +31,000): Gains were led by Manufacturing (+17,000) and Construction (+15,000), offsetting a slight dip in Natural Resources and Mining (-1,000).
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Regional Breakdown: The Northeast led the nation by far with 56,000 new jobs added (anchored heavily by 47,000 in the Mid-Atlantic region), followed by the West (+17,000), South (+11,000), and Midwest (+5,000).
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Establishment Size: Medium-sized businesses led expansion, adding 54,000 jobs, followed by small establishments (+23,000) and large firms (+14,000).
Pay insights and wage growth
According to ADP Pay Insights—which tracks individual worker pay over 12-month intervals using millions of anonymous payroll transactions—wage growth held stable:
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Job-Stayers: Base pay rose 3.0% year-over-year (gross pay up 4.4%).
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Job-Changers: Base pay increased 4.8% year-over-year (gross pay up 7.3%), continuing to reflect higher compensation premiums for workers switching positions.
The September report also incorporated first-quarter Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) data issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
