–Small Business Payroll Data Reports Contrary to ADP National
Employment Report–
CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 3, 2014--
The CBIZ
Small Business Employment Index (SBEI), a barometer for hiring
trends that surveys data from 3,500 companies with 300 or fewer
employees, decreased by 1.82 percent during the month of September. This
follows an advance of 1.2 percent during the month of August. This
report runs contrary to ADP’s National Employment report, which is
seasonally-adjusted, that offered small businesses added as many as
88,000 employees across the country last month.
“Economic deterioration in Europe, Russian intervention in Ukraine with
its hand on the gas valve, a strengthening dollar here and the
possibility of seasonal employment changes after the summer all offer us
reasons why September and the third quarter close out on a dismal note
on the macro level,” says Philip Noftsinger, business unit president for CBIZ
Payroll Services. “The geopolitical climate and economic concerns
abroad may have impacted business owner sentiment. Still, even with
these mood changes, I am not convinced that the domestic economy isn’t
still strengthening despite the headwinds.”
To review an infographic with data from the employment index, visit our blog.¹
Additional take-away points from the September SBEI include:
-
At-a-glance: 21 percent of the companies included in the SBEI
added staff during the September period while 30 percent decreased
payroll. 49 percent of the small businesses held steady with their
employee totals. 4001 companies were included in the August and
September periods of the SBEI.
-
Consistency matters: Small business owners historically have
reduced head count in September, according to the SBEI, and this
month’s reading is consistent with that pattern. For the past six
years, September’s SBEI, which is raw data and not seasonally
adjusted, has printed with a negative number.
-
What to watch: Noftsinger feels that this month’s reading is an
improvement over the prior two years, so while it is consistent with
seasonal hiring patterns, this may not be as dismal a tone as some of
the other macro data expected. We may have to wait until holiday
shopping season to validate that position, though, as history has
proven October to read a negative number for the past four years.
CBIZ Payroll Services manages payroll services for more than 3,500
businesses. Its index reflects a broad array of industries and
geographies corresponding to the markets across the United States where
CBIZ provides human capital services. The data represented by the SBEI
is derived from a segment of employers not completely accounted for by
the ADP and Federal BLS employment reports.
Editor’s note:
(1) The SBEI illustration is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at http://www.cbiz.com/insights-resources/blog.
Follow CBIZ on Twitter at @CBZ
or on Facebook.
About CBIZ, Inc.
CBIZ, Inc. provides professional business services that help clients
better manage their finances and employees. CBIZ provides its clients
with financial services including accounting, tax, financial advisory,
government health care consulting, risk advisory, real estate
consulting, and valuation services. Employee services include employee
benefits consulting, property and casualty insurance, retirement plan
consulting, payroll, life insurance, HR consulting, and executive
recruitment. As one of the nation’s largest brokers of employee benefits
and property and casualty insurance, and one of the largest accounting
and valuation companies in the United States, the Company’s services are
provided through nearly 100 Company offices in 34 states. http://cbiz.com
Source: CBIZ, Inc.
Gregory
FCA for CBIZ,
Inc.
Jimmy Moock, 610-228-2125
(C:) 610-348-7849
jimmy@gregoryfca.com
