Retail trade jobs rebound in June

The retail industry has had a rough go of it this year with store closures and job losses from February through May. During that period retail payrolls dropped 79,400 jobs. But in June, the negative trend was bucked. The retail sector added 8,100 jobs during the month, a big improvement over the 7,200 jobs lost in May.

“The gain in June shows that the industry is still very much meeting the demands of consumers and households, but one month does not make a trend,” said Jack Kleinhenz, chief economist for the National Retail Federation.

Electronics and apparel store hiring remained soft in June and those categories continue to migrate online, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.