US private employers added 38,000 jobs in August, falling short of the 47,000 consensus estimate and marking the slowest pace of hiring since January, according to the ADP National Employment Report released on September 2. The figure also lagged the upwardly revised 46,000 jobs added in July, extending a deceleration trend that has raised fresh questions about labor market resilience ahead of the government's key payrolls release.
The weakness was concentrated in goods-producing industries, which shed a net 10,000 positions. Manufacturing bore the brunt, losing 17,000 jobs, while natural resources and mining declined by 5,000. Construction was the sole bright spot in the sector, adding 12,000 roles. On the services side, education and health services dominated hiring with 45,000 new positions, followed by leisure and hospitality at 16,000. However, professional and business services cut 16,000 jobs and trade, transportation and utilities reduced payrolls by 5,000. Information sector employment fell by 4,000.
The slowdown was driven heavily by small and mid-size firms. Establishments with 1 to 19 employees added 20,000 jobs, but those with 20 to 49 employees cut 17,000, leaving a net gain of just 3,000 for the smallest businesses. Medium-sized firms with 50 to 499 employees reported no net change, while large employers with 500 or more workers accounted for nearly all the gains at 34,000.
ADP also released expanded wage data under its new Pay Insights platform, which now tracks base pay and gross pay across 56 US metropolitan areas. Median base pay for all private workers rose 3.2 percent year over year in August, with job-stayers seeing a 3.0 percent increase and job-changers earning 4.7 percent more. Median gross pay, which includes bonuses, commissions and tips, grew 4.7 percent, with job-stayers at 4.4 percent and job-changers at 7.3 percent.
Liv Wang, lead data scientist at ADP Research, noted that pay growth has been decelerating for four consecutive years. "Among lower-paid workers in particular, base pay growth has lost momentum and now is slower than it was prior to the pandemic," Wang said in the report's release.
The report arrives three days before the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its August nonfarm payrolls data on Friday, September 5. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expect the government count to show a gain of 53,000 to 58,000 jobs, following a surprising 23,000 decline in July. The unemployment rate is forecast to hold at 4.1 percent.
The ADP data adds to a mixed economic backdrop that is complicating the Federal Reserve's rate-setting calculus. PCE inflation remains above 3 percent, oil prices hover near $90 per barrel, and political uncertainty around trade policy continues to weigh on business confidence. The weak August hiring data reduces the likelihood of a Fed rate cut in September, even as some market participants had recently priced in easing.
Critically, the ADP report covers a narrower slice of the economy than the BLS survey, and the two measures have frequently diverged in recent months. Still, the consistent signal of slowing private-sector hiring reinforces a narrative of a cooling labor market that the Fed will be watching closely when it meets later in September.
Sources
- [ADP National Employment Report: Private-Sector Employment Increased by 38,000 Jobs in August](https://mediacenter.adp.com/2026-09-02-ADP-National-Employment-Report-Private-Sector-Employment-Increased-by-38,000-Jobs-in-August) — ADP Media Center, September 2, 2026
- [ADP National Employment Report: Private Sector Employment Increased by 38,000 Jobs in August](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/adp-national-employment-report-private-sector-employment-increased-by-38-000-jobs-in-august-302867661.html) — PRNewswire, September 2, 2026
- [Private payrolls rose by 38,000 in August, fewer than expected, ADP reports](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/02/private-payrolls-rose-by-38000-in-august-fewer-than-expected-adp-reports.html) — CNBC, September 2, 2026
