ADP: Private Payrolls Grew by 86,000 in October, Topping Forecasts

The private-sector labor market found its footing in October. Companies added 86,000 jobs last month, payrolls processor ADP reported Wednesday — the same tally as a downwardly revised September and a hair above the 75,000 that Dow Jones economists had penciled in.

Services did the heavy lifting. Trade, transportation and utilities led the pack with 39,000 new positions, education and health services chipped in 28,000, and leisure and hospitality added 19,000. Financial activities grew by 15,000, construction by 13,000 and other services by 10,000.

Not every sector joined the party. Professional and business services cut 27,000 roles, natural resources and mining dropped 8,000, and information services — a sector feeling the squeeze of the artificial intelligence build-out — lost 2,000.

Employers of every size were hiring, ADP said. Mid-sized firms with 50 to 499 workers added 33,000 jobs, small businesses added 28,000, and large companies contributed 24,000.

Paychecks kept climbing, and switchers cleaned up. Workers who changed jobs saw a 4.8% annual pay bump, while those who stayed put got 3%. ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said job-changers were lured by bonuses, overtime and more hours on top of higher base pay, pushing their earnings growth to its fastest pace since March 2024. A separate Bureau of Labor Statistics report Tuesday showed quits hitting their highest level since March 2025.

ADP's count is the warm-up act for the main event: the BLS nonfarm payrolls report lands Friday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expect a gain of 59,000 for October, up from September's modest 29,000.