March saw the biggest jump in hiring since July 2023, according to the ADP National Employment Report Economy Lab report released Wednesday.

The report, which analyzes the payroll transactions of more than 25 million US workers, is produced by the ADP Research Institute in collaboration with the Stanford Digital Economy Lab.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday that employers posted 8.76 million job vacancies in February, “up modestly from 8.75 million in January and about what economists had forecast,” according to the Associated Press.

At the same time, the number of layoffs increased slightly, to 1.7 million in February from 1.6 million in January, according to BLS’ monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS.

Private-sector employment increased by 184,000 jobs in March, and annual pay was up 5.1% year over year, ADP reported.

“Job gains were strong across industries with the exception of professional services, where hiring fell,” according to the monthly analysis.

The health and education sector added 17,000 jobs in March compared with the 11,000 jobs added in February.

Data showed a service sector gain of 142,000 jobs, compared with 110,000 jobs added the previous month. The biggest gains in the sector were seen in leisure / hospitality, which saw 63,000 more jobs added.

Regionally, the biggest job gains in March occurred in the South, which saw a 91,000-position boost. Private employers in the West added 53,000 jobs, followed by the Midwest, with 28,000 more jobs, and the Northeast, with 20,000 jobs added. 

Medium-sized firms (with 50 to 499 employees) gained the most jobs in March, 93,000. Large establishments (with 500 or more employees) gained 87,000 jobs, and small companies (with one to 49 employees) added 16,000 jobs.

Pay gains

For job-stayers, year-over-year pay gains were flat at 5.1%, according to the data. Pay gains for job-changers increased to 10% for the second consecutive month.

“March was surprising not just for the pay gains, but the sectors that recorded them. The three biggest increases for job-changers were in construction, financial services and manufacturing,” ADP Chief Economist Nela Richardson said in a press release issued in conjunction with the report. “Inflation has been cooling, but our data shows pay is heating up in both goods and services.”

Companies with one to 19 employees saw the smallest median change in annual pay, 4.7%. The change was 5.2% for firms with 20 to 49 employees, 5.3% for employers with 50 to 249 workers, 5.1% for companies with 250 to 499 employees, and 4.9% at firms with 500 or more workers.

Read more workforce-related news here.