U.S. Private Sector Adds 807,000 Jobs In December, Much More Than Expected

Private sector employment in the U.S. surged by much more than expected in the month of December, according to a report released by payroll processor ADP on Wednesday.

ADP said private sector employment spiked by 807,000 jobs in December after jumping by a revised 505,000 jobs in November.

Economists had expected private sector employment to increase by 400,000 jobs compared to the addition of 534,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

“December’s job market strengthened as the fallout from the Delta variant faded and Omicron’s impact had yet to be seen,” said ADP chief economist Nela Richardson.

The much stronger than expected private sector job growth reflected broad-based gains, with employment in the service-providing sector soaring by 669,000 jobs amid a jump in leisure/hospitality jobs.

Employment in the goods-producing sector also shot up by 138,000 jobs in December, reflecting the strongest job growth of the year.

The report also showed employment at large businesses surged by 389,000 jobs, while medium and small businesses added 214,000 jobs and 204,000 jobs, respectively.

“December’s job growth brought the fourth quarter average to 625,000, surpassing the 514,000 average for the year,” Richardson noted.

She added, “While job gains eclipsed 6 million in 2021, private sector payrolls are still nearly 4 million jobs short of pre-COVID-19 levels.”

On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly employment report, which includes both public and private sector jobs.

Economists currently expect employment to jump by 400,000 jobs in December after rising by 210,000 jobs in November. The unemployment rate is expected to edge down to 4.1 percent from 4.2 percent.

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