What Does the Drop in Small Business Hiring Mean?

On March 6th, ADP, the payroll company, released a report which showed that hiring by small businesses dropped precipitously last month. ADP’s small business customer base showed an increase of 12,000 jobs in February, compared with 107,000 the month before and 84,000 in December.

While new jobs were added — not eliminated — the decline from the preceding months seems to indicate a degree of contraction. But it may also show that small businesses are just being cautious about extending themselves as the political season starts up. Given that political tumult in the country right now, it’s not unreasonable to think that our collective breath-holding has begun. And based on the past few elections, there will be no exhaling until November 2020.