Business
U.S. Small Business Employment Trends Hold Steady to Start 2026
ROCHESTER, N.Y., February 03, 2026--According to the January Paychex Small Business Employment Watch, job and wage growth trends among U.S. small businesses remained consistent to start 2026. The Small Business Jobs Index — which reflects the payroll data of a subset of Paychex clients with fewer than 50 employees — increased 0.04 percentage points to 99.30 in January. Additionally, hourly earnings growth for workers has remained essentially unchanged since July 2025 at 2.68%.
About this update from Paychex, Inc.
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