Disappointing April jobs growth keeps unemployment rate above 6%

Hiring around the U.S. in April was much weaker than economists expected, with employers adding 266,000 jobs, a Labor Department report showed on Friday. Some forecasters had predicted payroll gains of at least 1 million, pointing to rapid economic growth this year. 

The nation's unemployment rate ticked up to 6.1% from 6% as more Americans sought work. The labor force, defined as the number of people working or looking for work, grew by 430,000 people last month.  The leisure and hospitality sector added 331,000 jobs, but those gains were offset by losses in temporary help services, transportation, and warehousing and auto manufacturing.