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Private-sector job creation slowed sharply in the first quarter of 2026, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report released Wednesday that covers employment changes from December 2025 to March 2026.
The Business Employment Dynamics report showed a net gain of 88,000 jobs at private-sector establishments, down from 609,000 in the preceding quarter. Published October 28 at 10 a.m. Eastern, the figures describe the first three months of the year, not current October hiring.
Fewer gross gains, more gross losses
Expanding and opening businesses generated 7.381 million jobs in the first quarter, while contracting and closing businesses lost 7.293 million, according to the BLS release. The difference between those seasonally adjusted figures was the 88,000 net gain.
Gross job gains fell by 478,000 from the previous quarter. Gross job losses increased by 43,000.
Existing establishments that expanded added 5.900 million jobs, while opening establishments contributed 1.481 million. Contracting establishments lost 5.829 million jobs, and closing establishments accounted for 1.464 million losses.
Firm-size figures are a separate measure
In its separate firm-level series, BLS reported a net employment decline of 67,000 at firms with one to 49 employees and a loss of 5,000 at firms with 50 to 249 employees. Firms with 250 or more employees added 255,000 net jobs.
Those firm-size figures are a different series from the establishment-level totals. They should not be added to, or treated as a breakdown that reconciles with, the 88,000 establishment-level net gain.
By industry, goods-producing establishments recorded a net increase of 96,000 jobs, while service-providing establishments lost a net 8,000. Gross gains exceeded gross losses in six of the 13 industry sectors covered.
What the quarterly report measures
Business Employment Dynamics tracks job gains and losses at private-sector businesses between the third month of one quarter and the third month of the next. It is compiled from administrative employment records used in the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.
BLS cautions that the net change derived from these gross flows differs from the net employment change in its monthly payroll survey because of differences in coverage and methods. This release is not a new monthly payroll estimate.
The full release and technical note also incorporate annual revisions to the previous four quarters of unadjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data. The second-quarter 2026 report is scheduled for January 27, 2027, at 10 a.m. Eastern.
JBizNews Desk | Washington
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