The Conference Board's employment trends index dipped 0.6% in June, and now stands at 111.9. It has fallen 8% since July 2007.

Total nonfarm employment peaked in December 2007, and 438,000 jobs have been lost since, according to The Conference Board. "The decline in payrolls is still mostly concentrated in the construction and goods related industries," said Gad Levanon, senior economist at The Conference Board. "Manufacturing, trade, construction and truck transportation industries shed 712,000 jobs in the last six months while the rest of the economy added 274,000 jobs."