Job growth held steady in Connecticut during the month of May as the state added 1,600 jobs, according to the state Department of Labor.Â
Connecticut’s unemployment rate shrunk from 4.4% to 4.2%, the labor department said. The private sector led the way with a gain of 2,900 new jobs, while the government sector shed a net 1,300 jobs.Â
Labor officials also said they revised April’s job gains downward  from 1,600 new positions created to 1,400.Â
Despite the growth, Connecticut still has only recovered 82.6% of the 289,400 jobs lost during March and April 2020, when the pandemic temporarily shut down significant parts of the state’s economy. The private sector is 86.3% recovered from the April 2020 COVID employment trough.
“May showed solid job growth,” said Patrick Flaherty, director of the Office of Research at the Connecticut Department of Labor. “The private sector has added more than 15,000 jobs so far in 2022 and the unemployment rate has fallen in ten of the past eleven months.”
In May, seven of the 10 major industry supersectors generated employment gains, while three declined.
The sectors that gained jobs included:
- Professional and Business Services +1,400, 0.6%, 217,200
- Educational and Health Services +800, 0.2%, 334,800
- Information +500, 1.7%, 30,400
- Other Services +500, 0.8%, 60,800
- Leisure and Hospitality +500, 0.3%, 148,200
- Trade, Transportation & Utilities +400, 0.1%, 295,300
- Financial Activities +300, 0.3%, 118,400
The sectors that lost jobs included:Â
- Construction and Mining -1,300, -2.1%, 61,900
- Government -1,300, -0.6%, 222,500
- Manufacturing -200, -0.1%, 159,000
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