ADP: Leisure, Hospitality Drive Job Growth in October, US Adds 571,000 Positions

U.S. hiring bounced back in October after a couple of lackluster months, with a run on new workers in the leisure and hospitality sector highlighting 571,000 new jobs for the month, according to payroll processing firm ADP Wednesday (Nov. 3).

October represented the most jobs added to private-sector payrolls since June and was higher than the Dow Jones forecast of 395,000 new employees for the month. The uptick was led by 185,000 hires in leisure and hospitality, including bars, restaurants and hotels.

“The job market is revving back up as the delta wave of the pandemic winds down,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, which worked with ADP on the monthly report. “Job gains are accelerating across all industries, and especially among large companies.

“As long as the pandemic remains contained, more big job gains are likely in coming months,” he said.

Overall, the services sector grew by 458,000 in October, including 88,000 new professional and business services jobs, 78,000 new trade transportation and utilities roles, and 56,000 education and health services positions.

Construction jobs also jumped 54,000 in the month and manufacturing was up 53,000, according to ADP.

From a size standpoint, businesses with more than 500 employees by far led the way with 342,000 new hires. Businesses with fewer than 50 workers added 115,000 and medium-sized firms increased by 114,000.

The Labor Department’s nonfarm payrolls count is expected Friday (Nov. 5), with Dow Jones projecting an increase of 450,000 for October.

In September, ADP reported 523,000 new jobs, compared to the Labor Department’s total of 317,000. The growth was led by leisure and hospitality with 74,000 new jobs, followed by professional and business services with 60,000 new jobs and retail with 56,000 added positions.

Read more: Sept. Jobs Report Disappoints, With Just 194K New Positions Added

The September labor data was compiled in mid-September when the delta variant of the coronavirus was close to its peak. COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations have dropped in most of the U.S. since then.