Although the unemployment rate continued to decline in May, losses for the construction industry were moderate compared with previous months, according to figures released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The manufacturing industry, particularly machinery and motor vehicles and parts, continued to experience steep job losses.
Construction employment decreased by 59,000 for the month, a marked improvement over the 117,000 average monthly job losses for the previous six months. Of the losses, 30,000 were nonresidential specialty trade contractors and 11,000 were in residential building construction.
Manufacturing fell by 156,000 for the month and the mining industry lost 11,000 jobs in May.
