Private sector hiring surged in April with the biggest monthly jump in five years, while people with jobs worked more hours, dpa quoted the US Bureau of Labour Statistics as reporting Friday. Overall, non-farm payrolls grew by 244,000 last month. The improving job market appeared to have lured more people into the workforce, bumping the unemployment rate up to 9 per cent from 8.8 per cent in March. The official unemployment rate only includes people actively seeking a job. The ranks of frustrated workers who have stopped looking have swelled since the 2008-09 recession. Private payrolls grew by 268,000 in April, while government employment declined by 24,000. The overall April gain easily exceeded Wall Street expectations, as Bloomberg News reported that its survey of Wall Street economists showed an average forecast of 185,000 jobs to be added for the month. The number of workers unemployed for more than six months fell by 283,000 to 5.8 million people, which cut the rate of long-term jobless to 43.4 per cent of those looking for work. The Bureau of Labour Statistics revised its March payroll estimate from a gain of 216,000 to a gain of 221,000.
