Private sector employers added 217,000 jobs last month, including 100,000 jobs at small businesses, according to payroll data from ADP.
ADP and its partner Macroeconomic Advisers found that midsized businesses with between 50 and 499 employees added 104,000 jobs in February, while large businesses added with more than 499 employees added 13,000 jobs.
The service-providing sector added 202,000 jobs, the 13th consecutive month of employment gains there, while the goods-producing sector added 15,000 jobs, the fourth consecutive monthly gain. ADP also saw an increase in the manufacturing industry of 20,000 jobs, the fifth consecutive monthly gain.
Of the 100,000 jobs added among small businesses with less than 50 employees, 97,000 were in the service-providing sector and 3,000 in the goods-producing sector.
“Employment gains in the small-business sector have been positive for twelve consecutive months, an encouraging sign for the job market,” said ADP president and CEO Gary C. Butler in a statement. “ADP’s key business metrics for its small-business segment through December 2010 also reflected a strengthening labor market, as well as robust demand for payroll and human resource services.”
