U.S. jobs losses highest in 34 years

New figures from the U.S. Department of Labor reveal that the nation’s employers cut 533,000 jobs in November, sending the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent.

That’s the biggest monthly spike in job losses in 34 years, and it was much higher than the 320,000 job cuts economists were expecting.

The U.S. unemployment rate stood at 6.5 percent in October. At 6.7 percent now, unemployment is at a 15-year high.

According to the Labor Department, the job losses were spread across industries, from factories to financial firms to retailers. Sectors that showed increases in employment during November were education, health and government.

In San Antonio, unemployment rose slightly, to 5.1 percent, at of the end of October. In September, unemployment stood at 5.0 percent.