The county unemployment rate dipped from 5.8 percent in March to 5.3 percent last month.

But at the same time, the labor force – the number of people employed or unemployed and looking for work – shrank.

That could mean some job seekers stopped looking for work or that positions are becoming harder to find, Turek said.

The county added 1,100 jobs over the month and 3,300 jobs over the year.

“We had a month comparable to last year’s, but last year’s numbers weren’t great,” Turek said.

The construction industry posted the largest year-over-year decline in jobs, down 1,100 since last April.

Government and educational and health services jobs recorded some of the biggest gains, adding 1,900 and 1,500 jobs over the year, respectively.

The pace of year-over-year job growth in Pierce County remains below 2 percent, a bit slower than most would like to see.

“When we get below 2 percent growth, though there’s jobs being added, they are generally not being added at a pace to hire everyone that’s looking,” Turek said.

And when the county numbers are adjusted for seasonal fluctuations in hiring (to account for things such as summer hiring or winter slowdowns), Pierce County actually lost jobs over the month, though it still gained jobs over the year.

But, Turek said, it could be worse – and it is worse in many other parts of the country.

“I’m keeping my fingers crossed,” he said. “I still think we are going to sidestep a great part of this (national economic slowdown) and hopefully rebound in the second half.”

The state reported a mixed bag of employment figures: the unemployment rate dipped as the state lost jobs over the month.

Seasonally adjusted employment decreased by 1,800 people from March to April, though it grew by 46,300 over the year.

The jobs lost represent a sliver of total employment in the state, though this is the second consecutive month-over-month decline.

David Wallace, an Employment Security Department economist, said there’s not enough evidence to suggest the state is in a recession.

The state unemployment rate dipped from 5.2 in March to 4.6 in April. The seasonally adjusted rate was 4.7 percent.