An attendee holds pamphlets at the Albany Job Fair in Latham, New York, US, on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024.
Angus Mordant | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Private payrolls growth was less than expected in November, reflecting a slowing labor market, according to a report Wednesday from ADP.
Companies added 146,000 on the month, below the downwardly revised 184,000 in October and less than the Dow Jones estimate for 163,000.
Education and health services led job creation, adding 50,000 positions on the month. That was followed by construction with 30,000 new jobs, trade, transportation and utilities with 28,000 additions, and the other services category, which contributed 20,000 jobs.
Manufacturing lost 26,000 positions on the month. Businesses with fewer than 50 employees also reported a drop of 17,000.
Wage growth accelerated, by 4.8%, a faster gain since October, the first time that has happened in 27 months.
“While overall growth for the month was healthy, industry performance was mixed,” ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said. “Manufacturing was the weakest we’ve seen since spring. Financial services and leisure and hospitality were also soft.”
Even with the lower than expected total and downward October revision, ADP’s count was still well ahead of the Bureau of Labor Services’ more closely watched nonfarm payrolls count, which showed an increase of just 12,000 jobs in October. The BLS report will be released Friday and is expected to show growth of 214,000, according to Dow Jones, after the Boeing strike and storms in the Southeast lowered the October totals.
