State Says California Economy Lost 2,600 Payroll Jobs In April

Sacramento, CA — California´s economy posted a net loss of 2,600 payroll jobs in April, with the construction sector shedding the most jobs over the month.

The state Employment Development Department reported today that more than 14.9 million people in the state held payroll jobs during the month.

April´s employment figures followed a revised loss of 13,400 payroll jobs in March.

Payroll employment totals are drawn from a survey of employers and don´t include farm workers and the self-employed.

A separate survey of households suggests an additional 1.9 million Californians held jobs during the month.

Some 870,000 Californians were seeking work in April, up by 22,000 from the previous month and down by 91,000 one year ago.

The state´s unemployment rate edged up to 4.9 percent during the month. It was 4.8 percent in March and 5.4 percent in April 2005.