American Businesses Shed 20.236 Million Jobs in April

The private sector lost 20.236 million jobs in April, according to a report published Wednesday from the payroll company ADP.

The hardest-hit sector was leisure and hospitality, which shrank by 8.6 million jobs in April, according to ADP. That was followed by trade and transportation, down 3.4 million jobs. Construction lost 2.5 million, and manufacturing shrank by 1.7 million. Professional and business services contracted by 1.2 million.

Large businesses led the way in laying off workers, losing nine million employees. Medium-sized businesses, those with 50 or more workers but less than 500, laid off around 5.3 million. Smaller businesses fired around six million workers.

The figure was in line with Wall Street’s expectations.