(Bloomberg). — The U.S. has added the most jobs in just four months. It suggests that American employers are moving forward in filling near-record numbers of vacant positions.

Businesses’ payrolls increased by last month, after a revised 523,000 gain in September, according to ADP Research Institute data released Wednesday. According to a Bloomberg poll of economists, the median prediction was for a rise in payrolls by 400,000.

Due to the continuing shortage of labor, businesses are desperate for workers to fill their ranks. Still, total employment measured by ADP remains well below its pre-pandemic level, suggesting higher wages and sign-on bonuses aren’t doing enough to attract and retain talent in a labor market where jobseekers are increasingly choosy.

The data precede Friday’s monthly employment report from the Labor Department, which is forecast to show that private payrolls increased by 408,000 in October. While the ADP figures don’t always follow the same pattern as the Labor Department’s data, the acceleration could point to a strong October report.

Broad Advances

In October, service-provider employment grew by 458,000. This is the highest increase since June. It was primarily due to payrolls at leisure, hospitality, and professional or business companies.

Goods producers’ payrolls rose 113,000 reflecting significant improvements in construction and manufacturing employment since September 2020.

“The job market is revving back up as the Delta-wave of the pandemic winds down,” Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, said in a statement. “As long as the pandemic remains contained, more big job gains are likely in coming months.

Small businesses saw a slight increase of 115,000, while companies with over 1,000 employees added 305,000 to their payrolls.

ADP’s payroll data represent firms employing nearly 26 million workers in the U.S.

(Updates with chart.

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