Employment is one of the most important social and economic issues in every country across the globe. Job creation, however, requires the combined effort of both government and private sector, particularly considering that the private sector is recognised to have the leverage to provide jobs so long as a conducive environment is provided by the government. This study models the determinants of employment in the private sector to ascertain their ability to willingly contribute their quota towards the realisation of SDGs 3, 8, and 10 through job creation and in the spirit of owners’ resources, firms’ specific characteristics, returns on investment, and tax and social cost burden. The study augmented the profit maximisation framework of firms as contained in Jehle and Reny (2011) and applied a generalised least squares technique on a panel data set of 13 banks quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, over 17 17-year period. The study confirms that the level of employment is largely determined by resources available to firms, firm-specific characteristics as wellas the level of profitability. The results also indicate that tax serves as a disincentive to job creation. Consequently, to encourage firms to create more jobs to aid the realization of SDGs in Nigeria, the study recommends amongst others, the establishment of the Private Sector Equity Development Fund (PSEDF), the entrenchment of a conducive environment to enhance the inflow of foreign direct investment, as well as tax incentives and other policies that enhance the long-term survival of firms in Nigeria.