US online job ads fell sharply by 285,800 in May to approximately 4.88 million, following flat growth in March and April, according to The Conference Board’s report on online job ads.

“The large May loss continues a pattern of weak employer demand in 2016,” said Gad Levanon, chief economist, North America, at The Conference Board. “Following relatively slow growth in 2014 and 2015, we are now seeing some clear signs of softness in labor demand in recent months.”

Only two of the 10 largest online job categories posted increases in May; healthcare practitioners and technical ads increased 3,600 to 628,100 while education, training, and library ads increased 3,300 to 169,700.

Transportation and material moving posted the largest loss, down by 60,600 to a total of 317,100, followed by office and administrative support ads, which fell by 38,400 to 521,400.