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ACA impact on part-time employment is negligible, ADP finds

June 24, 2015

The number of part-time jobs and number of hours worked remained fairly stable following the implementation of the employer shared responsibility provisions of the Affordable Care Act, according to the ADP Research Institute’s new study, “The Affordable Care Act and Economics of the Part-Time Workforce: Measuring the Impact of the Affordable Care Act.”

Despite predictions by some industry observers that employers would move many employees working 30 to 34 hours per week into higher or lower hourly categories to manage healthcare benefits costs, the study indicates little to no change in the number of workers within each of three hourly ranges studied since implementation of ACA provisions began.

The research focused on three hourly categories: less than 30 hours, 30 to 34 hours, and more than 34 hours. In all cases, there was little to no change indicated across comparable quarters. It found employees working less than 30 hours per week continued to account for 13% of the US workforce; employees working 30 to 34 hours account for 4%; and those employees working what is generally considered full-time, 35 or more hours, account for 82%.

The research indicates the lack of ACA impact on part-time employment was also consistent within individual industries. Within each examined industry, the number of employees working between 30 and 34 hours remained steady, ranging between 2% and 4% depending on the industry. Overall part-time employment experienced similar stability. The greatest change occurred within the wholesale and retail trade sector, with a 3% decline in part-time workers from third quarter 2013 to third quarter 2014.

“The impact of the ACA cannot be considered in isolation from broader economic and demographic changes,” notes Christopher Ryan, VP of strategic advisory services at ADP. “The growing strength of the economy, in addition to the supply and demand of talent, is likely to heavily influence workforce decisions.”