The pace of small business employment growth increased in January, according to The Paychex|IHS Small Business Jobs Index. The index rose 0.09% to 100.65, representing the strongest one-month gain since the national index peaked in April 2014. However, the index fell 0.38% year over year and January’s improvement has not reversed the downturn seen in the latter half of 2014.

“Following several months of slower employment growth, it’s encouraging to see small businesses start the New Year on a high note,” said Paychex President and CEO Martin Mucci. “We’re hopeful that this will be a positive trend small businesses continue to see throughout 2015.”

Fifteen of the 20 states analyzed showed positive movement in January. At this rate, small business employment is growing near the same pace seen during the last quarter of 2013, according to the report.

The index is based on aggregated data from a subset of the Paychex client base, approximately 350,000 businesses with less than 50 workers in the US.