Labor department reports weak job growth in Kansas

? The Kansas unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3 percent in April as the state lost 2,300 jobs, the Kansas Department of Labor reported.

That unemployment rate is still below the national rate of 5.4 percent. But the trends were moving in opposite directions as the national rate was down from the month before as the country added 233,000 new jobs during the month.

Over the past year, total employment in Kansas grew by 11,700 jobs, or about 1 percent. The state’s unemployment rate was down from 4.5 percent in April 2014.

The biggest decline was in the manufacturing sector, which lost 2,800 jobs in April and 3,700 jobs over the year, according to labor department figures.

Tyler Tenbrink, senior labor economist for the department, said that was partly due to lower gas prices that have led to weakness in the oil and gas drilling industry.

The Lawrence area lost about 200 jobs over the month, but has gained about 900 jobs since April 2014, the labor report said.