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Covid Kills 67,600 Jobs in Tax and Accounting

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Two years of steady gains wiped out in one month

Profession loses four years of job growth in the first month of the Coronavirus recession, reversing years of steady gains.

By Beth Bellor

Crushed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the tax and accounting profession has fallen below 1 million employees for the first time in two years – way below, and that may be just the tip of the iceberg, according to CPA Trendlines Research.

MORE on JOBS and HIRING TRENDS:  Planning for the Coronavirus Recession  |  Pre-COVID-19, Accounting Profession Hits New Highs  |  The Fight for New Tax Clients  |  Tax & Accounting Headcounts Hit Record High   |  Hiring Growth Rate Shows Signs of Leveling Off   |  What Staffing Shortage?   |  Payroll Agencies Lead Jobs Growth in the Tax & Accounting Industry   |
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In this report, CPA Trendlines 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

The data comes with a big asterisk.

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Payroll Agencies Lead Jobs Growth in the Tax & Accounting Industry

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“The opportunities for CPA firms only increase.”

Get more from the “Talent, Career, and Growth Strategies: Job Satisfaction and Hiring Trends Tracking Poll” 
Join the survey. Get the results.

By Beth Bellor

“It’s a good time to be a CPA,” says Brian Esko, and – with some notable exceptions – it’s hard to disagree.

The managing director and executive recruiter at Parker & Lynch and Ajilon Search points to an unemployment rate of roughly 1.5 percent for accounting, almost 300,000 new jobs created over the last 12 months and wages rising at roughly 3 percent annually.

MORE ON JOBS: Hiring Trends: Accounting Hits 4.2% Expansion Rate | Hiring Trends Flash Warning Signs of Slowdown in Tax & Accounting | CHARTS: Tax & Accounting Among Biggest Jobs Creators in U.S.
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Esko

“For a CPA, there are more opportunities than ever in the market and companies are doing a better job of rewarding and retaining their people through compensation increases and internal growth opportunities,” Esko says.

In this report, CPA Trendlines highlights:

  • Current 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

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Hiring Surge Powered by Growth in Payroll Agencies

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Tax & accounting industry adds 40,500 new jobs to hit new record.

CPA Trendlines Jobs Report
Who’s hiring, who’s not, and why?
Who quitting for a new job & when?
Join the survey; get the results

By Beth Bellor

Payroll is proving to a bright spot and women are making some impressive gains in our look at employment in the accounting profession. The latest CPA Trendlines Jobs Report also finds that tax preparation services employment spiked in March, even when seasonally adjusted.

MORE ON JOBS: Tax Shops Bulk Up for Big Busy Season | Jobs Report: 43,000 New Hires | Tax Shops Cut 6,200 Jobs | Tax Shops Cut Staff by 10% | Benefits, Perks, and Incentives: The Happy-Packs of Employee Satisfaction | Salary Survey: Top Skills Getting Top Pay

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In this report, CPA Trendlines highlights:

  • Current 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

Typically, one respondent tells the CPA Trendlines Jobs Report said she’s “Not actively looking” for a new job, “but maybe I could be persuaded.” The reason: “Not comfortable with direction firm is taking.”

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Tax Shops Bulk Up for Big Busy Season

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Wages hit new highs.

By Beth Bellor
CPA Trendlines

New hiring in the tax and accounting industry may be slowing in many areas, but the latest CPA Trendlines Jobs Report finds gains overall. Up is up and we’ll take it.

MORE ON JOBS: Jobs Report: 43,000 New Hires | Tax Shops Cut 6,200 Jobs | Salary Survey: Top Skills Getting Top Pay | Accounting Wages Set New Record | All Staffed Up? New Tax Prep Hiring Stalls on Eve of Busy Season | The Myth of the Staff Shortage
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2019: Buckle Up for a Bumpy Road

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Global trade wars, political winds buffet business.

By Kayleigh Padar
CPA Trendlines

CPAs should be prepared to help their clients navigate an increasingly unstable global economy and burgeoning challenges with technology, particularly cyber threats, according to a new global study of C-level executives.

MORE SURVEYS & RESEARCH: Jobs Report: 43,000 New Hires  |  CPA Wealth Advisor Survey  |  Survey: Clients Rush for TCJA Answers  |  Join the Accounting Firm and Operations Technology Survey  |  Mergers vs. Clients: Winners and Losers  |

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The annual study from ATKearney shows a bumpy road ahead for global executives, from the effects of Brexit to the increase in targeted fake news campaigns. READ MORE →

Economy Shakes CPA Confidence

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CPA Outlook Index (AICPA)

But they expect better for their own firms.

By Kayleigh Padar
CPA Trendlines

Trade wars and interest rate trends are undermining accountants’ confidence in the U.S. economy, even as their outlook for their own firms strengthens, according to a new survey of 400 C-level CPAs.

MORE SURVEYS & RESEARCH: Jobs Report: 43,000 New Hires  |  CPA Wealth Advisor Survey  |  Survey: Clients Rush for TCJA Answers  |  Join the Accounting Firm and Operations Technology Survey  |  Mergers vs. Clients: Winners and Losers  |

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Only 57 percent said they were optimistic about the U.S. economy over the next 12 months, down from 69 percent in the previous quarter. CPAs cite trade issues and rising interest rates as the main reasons for their pessimism. READ MORE →

Jobs Report: 43,000 New Hires

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Hourly pay averages $33.53, up 4%.

By Beth Bellor
CPA Trendlines

As 2019 dawns, the most stunning trends in hiring in the tax and accounting industry is in payroll services, which shows year-over-year increases of 7 percent or more in overall employment, according to an exclusive CPA Trendlines analysis. Meanwhile, tax prep continues its slow slide.

MORE ON JOBS: Tax Shops Cut 6,200 Jobs | Tax Shops Cut Staff by 10% | Benefits, Perks, and Incentives: The Happy-Packs of Employee Satisfaction | Salary Survey: Top Skills Getting Top Pay | Growth Slowdown: Tax & Accounting Hiring Rates Hit Headwinds | Steady Gains in Hiring at Accounting Firms | Accounting Wages Set New Record
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In this report, CPA Trendlines reports:

  • Current hiring trends in each of the bookkeeping, payroll, tax and CPA segments of the industry.
  • Average hourly wages for key segments
  • Typical hours worked per week
  • Trends concerning women in the accounting workforce

READ MORE →

Tax Shops Cut 6,200 Jobs

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Signs of a hiring slowdown? Payroll agencies trim hours.

By Beth Bellor
CPA Trendlines

Are the heady days of hiring spikes over? Maybe, but the accounting profession still scores far more positives than negatives, according to a new CPA Trendlines analysis.

MORE ON JOBS: Tax Shops Cut Staff by 10% | Benefits, Perks, and Incentives: The Happy-Packs of Employee Satisfaction | Steady Gains in Hiring at Accounting Firms | Tax Prep Services Slash 10,000 Jobs as Busy Season Begins | Tax & Accounting Wages Up 4% | Accounting Profession Shows Steady Growth | Accounting Profession Growing, But Slowly
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New records are being set in overall staff, in payroll staff, and in bookkeeping. Tax preparation services, meanwhile, continue to shed employees. And payroll agencies are cutting back on hours worked.

In this report, CPA Trendlines highlights:

  • Current hiring trends in each of the bookkeeping, payroll, tax and CPA segments of the industry.
  • Average hourly wages for key segments
  • Typical hours worked per week
  • Trends concerning women in the accounting workforce

READ MORE →