we’ll be comparing apples to zebras for a while.
by beth bellor
what a difference a month makes. the accounting profession set several new records in the latest employment figures … but.
for our analysis on the covid-19 impact on the profession, see planning for the coronavirus recession
that “but,” of course, is the global pandemic. the numbers almost seemed dated as soon as they were released, because we know many of those gains quickly melted away.
the worse news is that the whole bleak picture isn’t revealed in the data. although the changes reflect the effects of the coronavirus (covid-19) and efforts to contain it, the march survey reference period came before many coronavirus-related business and school closures that occurred in the second half of the month.
in this report, 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 highlights:
- current and long-term hiring trends in each of the bookkeeping, payroll, tax and cpa segments of the industry (all data seasonally adjusted)
- average hourly wages for key segments
- typical hours worked per week
- trends concerning women in the accounting workforce
nationally, payroll employment fell by 701,000 in march, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent. the rise to 4.4 percent was 0.9 percentage point, which was the largest month-over-month increase in the rate since january 1975, when it also was 0.9 percentage point.
other notes for march:
- unemployed persons who reported being on temporary layoff more than doubled, to 1.8 million.
- those who were jobless less than 5 weeks increased by 1.5 million to 3.5 million, almost half of the unemployed.
- employment in professional and business services decreased by 52,000, concentrated in temporary help services (-50,000).
overall tax & accounting employment
employment in the accounting profession hit a new high of 1,041,600, up 4,100 or 0.4 percent for the month and 26,200 or 2.6 percent for the year. they averaged 36.2 hours per week, down 6 minutes or 0.3 percent for the month and year. they earned a record $35.43 an hour, up 46 cents or 1.3 percent for the month and $1.61 or 4.8 percent for the year.
staff numbered 769,000, up 3,700 or 0.5 percent for the month and 8,300 or 1.1 percent for the year. they worked 34.5 hours, up 12 minutes or 0.6 percent for the month but down 6 minutes or 0.3 percent for the year. they made a scant new high of $27.67, up 3 cents or 0.1 percent for the month and $1.18 or 4.5 percent for the year.
cpa firms
cpa firms hit the half-million mark for the first time at 500,400, up 4,200 or 0.8 percent for the month and 15,400 or 3.2 percent for the year. workers put in 36.9 hours, down 6 minutes or 0.3 percent for the month and 36 minutes or 1.6 percent for the year. their earnings topped $37 for the first time at $37.29, up 37 cents or 1 percent for the month and $1.40 or 3.9 percent for the year.
staff at cpa firms numbered 354,900, up 4,200 or 1.2 percent for the month and 3,200 or 0.9 percent for the year. they put in 35.8 weekly hours, flat for the month and down 18 minutes or 0.8 percent for the year. earnings dipped slightly to $28.53, down 6 cents or 0.2 percent for the month but up $1.15 or 4.2 percent for the year.
tax prep
tax preparation dropped to 87,000, down 1,400 or 1.6 percent for the month and 5,500 or 5.9 percent for the year.
payroll services
payroll services hit records at every data point. employment in payroll services jumped to 188,100, up 5,400 or 3 percent for the month and 14,800 or 8.5 percent for the year. hours hit a new high as well at 37.4, up 500 or 1.4 percent for the month and 2,400 or 6.9 percent for the year. earnings surpassed $34 for the first time at $34.33, up $1.14 or 3.4 percent for the month and $4.18 or 13.9 percent for the year.
staff numbered a new high of 157,600, up 5,500 or 3.6 percent for the month and 14,100 or 9.8 percent for the year. hours at a record 36.9 were up 24 minutes or 1.1 percent for the month and 2 hours or 5.7 percent for the year. earnings were a dime short of the high mark at $28.94, up 63 cents or 2.2 percent for the month and $2.32 or 8.7 percent for the year.
bookkeeping
other accounting services set a new employment record of 268,400, up 1,300 or 0.5 percent for the month and 9,200 or 3.5 percent for the year.
women
the profession employed 662,100 women, up 2,100 or 0.3 percent for the month and 19,800 or 3.1 percent for the year. a new high of 308,700 was marked at cpa firms, up 2,700 or 0.9 percent for the month and 8,700 or 2.9 percent for the year. women in payroll rose with the rest of that sector to 96,500, another record, up 3,700 or 4 percent for the month and 10,400 or 12.1 percent for the year.