Employers Cut 62,000 Jobs in June

Washington, DC, July 3, 2008--Payrolls were cut by 62,000 in June, the sixth straight month of nationwide job losses, while the unemployment rate held steady at 5.5 percent, according to the Labor Department.

Heavy job losses in construction, manufacturing and financial services, along with cutbacks in retailing, offset gains in education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and government.

The report matched economists' forecasts. They had been expecting employers to reduce payrolls by around 60,000 jobs in June.

So far this year, the economy has lost a total of 438,00 jobs, an average of 73,000 a month.