The February 2013 jobs report was released on March 6, and it's good news. Private sector jobs increased by 198,000 from January to February and the estimated gain from December to January was revised upward by 23,000 to 215,000.
Breakdown of private sector jobs
In an overview of the February jobs report, small businesses with less than 50 employees saw a gain of 77,000 jobs. Medium size businesses with 50-499 employees saw an increase of 65,000 jobs, and large businesses of more than 500 employees went up by 57,000.
“In February 2013, the U.S. private sector added a total of 198,000 new jobs, with most of this job growth occurring in the services sector. This growth can be attributed to comparable contributions across all three company size segments.” -- Carlos A. Rodriguez, president and chief executive officer of ADP
The February numbers show the private sector has bounced back from the Great Recession but not without sacrifice. Companies have made cuts, downsized, and sometimes even closed their doors for good. Many of the companies that survived have tightened their belts and are smaller, but they've learned how to make things work with less employees. Perhaps the government could take away the lesson from it all. Cuts can be painful, but in the end the private sector is stronger for it and growing again.
What does it mean for those looking for work?
According to Reuters/University of Michigan's preliminary reading of the overall index, consumer sentiment improved in February. What does all this mean for unemployment? Brookings posted the monthly update of the Barnichon-Nekarda model on March 5 which predicts a 7.8 percent unemployment rate for February, however some fear the sequestration spending cuts may affect those numbers.
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