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ADP Pulse puts private job growth at 20,000 a week

The preliminary measure accelerated for a third week, putting hiring back near its June pace.

  • HEADCOUNT Newsroom
  • 1 min read

ADP’s preliminary NER Pulse estimate puts U.S. private job growth at an average 20,000 jobs a week in the four weeks ending Sept. 5, 2026, the third straight weekly acceleration and close to the 21,000-a-week pace ADP reported for the four weeks ending June 20.

The seasonally adjusted four-week moving average rose from 16,750 for the period ending Aug. 29 and 12,250 for Aug. 22. It stood at 10,000 for the period ending Aug. 15. The figures, published Sept. 22, are preliminary and could change as additional data arrives.

The pickup follows a summer slowdown. ADP’s latest historical series shows average weekly gains falling from 21,000 in the four weeks ending June 20 to 8,250 in the period ending July 25. The latest reading brings employment growth close to, but still below, that June pace.

NER Pulse measures week-over-week employment changes using a four-week moving average, so the latest figure represents average weekly gains across the period rather than jobs added in the final week alone. ADP says the seasonally adjusted data carry a two-week lag to allow for more complete estimates.

The Pulse is a weekly update to the monthly ADP National Employment Report, with publication paused during weeks when the monthly report is released. The next Pulse is scheduled for Oct. 6, 2026.

  • ADP
  • NER Pulse
  • Private employment
  • U.S. labor market
  • Hiring

Sources (4)

  • prnewswire.com

    prnewswire.com/news-releases/adp-national-employment-report-preliminary-estimate-for-september-5-2026-302885145.html

  • finviz.com

    finviz.com/news/394231/adp-national-employment-report-preliminary-estimate-for-september-5-2026

  • stocktitan.net

    stocktitan.net/news/ADP/adp-national-employment-report-preliminary-estimate-for-september-5-mrl6rglrhi48.html

  • ca.marketscreener.com

    ca.marketscreener.com/news/adp-national-employment-report-preliminary-estimate-for-september-5-2026-ce785ad8dd8df123

HEADCOUNT reporting is evidence-backed and human-reviewed. Read our methodology, or send corrections to ryan@headcount.news.

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