The private sector added just 22,000 jobs in January, according to ADP – less than half of the 48,000 expected. Hiring was flat at small businesses, while medium-sized firms drove gains with 41,000 jobs. Large employers, by contrast, cut 18,000 jobs.
Job growth was uneven across industries. Four of ten sectors lost jobs, and three saw only modest gains. Education and health services led with a 74,000-job increase, while business and professional services shed 57,000 jobs.
Wage growth continues to favor job switchers, with pay rising 6.4% year over year, compared with 4.5% for workers who stayed in their roles.
What’s the bottom line?
Private payroll growth remains weak. ADP noted that just 398,000 jobs were added in 2025, well below the 771,000 added in 2024. That puts average monthly job growth last year at roughly 33,000, underscoring a clear slowdown in hiring momentum.
Plus, those 2025 figures could be revised even lower once updated Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW)numbers are released for the second half of last year.
