Paychex IHS Markit Small Business Employment Watch: Job Growth Tightens Among Small Businesses in March; Wage Growth Holds Steady
April 03, 2018
Small business employment growth declined slightly in March, while wage growth remained largely consistent, according to the latest Paychex | IHS Markit Small Business Employment Watch. Falling 0.12 percent to 99.65 in March, the Small Business Jobs Index has been below 100 for the past nine months and has slowed 1.07 percent since March 2017. Hourly earnings grew $0.69 in the past year to $26.48 for a 12-month wage growth of 2.66 percent, virtually unchanged from 2.67 percent YOY growth in February. Due to continued increases in hours worked, weekly earnings growth is higher than hourly earnings growth at 2.90 percent.