The legal sector gained 300 jobs in May after experiencing losses in the hundreds during the previous month, according to the latest employment report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, the industry has still lost 400 jobs since March, and a total of 22,200 legal jobs have disappeared since May 2009. (Here are our reports on the numbers in February, March, and April.)
Overall, the U.S. economy added 431,000 jobs in May, although the BLS was quick to point out that the upswing is largely a result of the 411,000 temporary employees the government hired to work on Census 2010. The new jobs helped ease the unemployment rate down from 9.9 percent in April to 9.7 percent, which is where it stood during the first three months of 2010.
