Latest Jobs Report Shows Strong Growth in November

U.S. companies added 215,000 jobs in November, according to the latest ADP National Employment report. ADP is a global provider of payroll, human resources and business services and solutions.

The report is based on the company's actual payroll data, and includes total non-farm, private-employment each month, with seasonal adjustments. The November increase was significantly higher than the 185,000 that analysts had anticipated. ADP also revised their October jobs numbers.

“The job market remained surprisingly resilient to the government shutdown and brinkmanship over the treasury debt limit,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. “Employers across all industries and company sizes looked through the political battle in Washington. If anything, job growth appears to be picking up.”

Most of the job growth was in small businesses with under 50 employees. These businesses contributed 102,000 of the new jobs created during the month. Medium-sized businesses (with 50-499 employees) added 48,000, while businesses with 1,000 employees gained 70,000. Only businesses defined as large and having between 500-999 employees saw a net loss, down 5,000 during the month.

Service-providing jobs increased the most, at 176,000, while the individual industries with the most growth were in “trade/transportation/utilities” and “professional/business services.”

“The U.S. private sector added 215,000 jobs during November, making it the strongest month for job growth in 2013,” said Carlos Rodriguez, president and chief executive officer of ADP. “It's an encouraging sign as we head toward the new year.”