May 15, 2008 4:06 PM

Bay State loses 2,400 jobs in April
Posted by Jesse Nunesat 4:06 PM

Massachusetts employers cut about 2,400 jobs in April, according to the state Department of Workforce Development. The drop ended a streak of six months of consecutive gains in payroll employment. However, a separate survey showed the state unemployment rate dropped to 4.1 percent in April, down from 4.4 percent in March, making it the lowest rate since September 2001 and almost a point lower than the national rate of 5 percent. The Globe's Robert Gavin reports:

The state economy in recent months has performed better than the nation's because of the strength of its healthcare and technology sectors. Education and healthcare added 3,200 jobs in April, and 14,500 over the past year. Information employment, which includes software publishers, rose 300, and has gained 1,600 jobs in the past year. Another key sector, professional and business services, shed 600 jobs in April, but has gained 7,400 jobs over the year.

Consumer- and housing-related sectors, however, continued to lose jobs. Construction employment fell by 900 jobs in April and is down 3,400 for the year. Retailers cut 1,000 jobs in April and 3,100 since April 2007.

Overall, state employment has grown by 23,000 jobs over the past year, or just under 1 percent. The state still has 93,000 fewer jobs than in early 2001, when employment peaked at the end of the last expansion.