Job growth and hourly earnings growth moderated in the latter part of 2024, according to the payroll processor Paychex.
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"The pace of job growth among U.S. small businesses downshifted slightly as 2024 progressed, yet small businesses remained resilient throughout the year." said Paychex president and CEO John Gibson in a statement. "As we head into 2025, small business owners continue to face some challenges such as access to growth capital, rising health care costs, and ability to hire qualified talent. In spite of this, optimism and hiring intentions improved to close the year — both trends that will be worth watching as we begin 2025."
Weekly earnings growth (2.54%) slowed to a four-year low in December, and weekly hours worked growth (-0.43%) remained in negative territory year-over-year for the 21st consecutive month, hitting its lowest level since July 2022. Three-month annualized hourly earnings growth (3.02%) was above 3% for the first month since April. Tampa (4.56%) topped the rankings among metropolitan areas for hourly earnings growth for the second month in a row.
The national small business jobs index averaged 100.22 in 2024, representing modest employment growth. However, the national jobs index slowed 1.32 percentage points from 101.21 in December 2023 to 99.89 in December 2024.
The Midwest ranked as the top region for small business employment growth for the seventh month in a row, at 100.20 in December. Wisconsin, at 100.77, led the way among Midwestern states and ranked in second place among all states for job growth in December, marking its best rank since March 2020.
For the second month in a row, Dallas (101.73) and Houston (101.16) ranked in first and second place, respectively, among metropolitan areas for job growth in December.
