CT lost 8,000 manufacturing jobs last year

Connecticut lost nearly 8,000 manufacturing jobs in the past 12 months, and nearly 20,000 over the past two years, an industry group says.

The 2011 Connecticut Manufacturers Register said that industrial employment fell 3.5 percent over the past 12 months, representing 7,808 industrial jobs lost between May 2009 and May 2010. This comes after the industry lost 11,000 jobs between May 2008 and May 2009.

The Register, a directory published by Manufacturers' News Inc., reports Connecticut now has 5,622 manufacturers employing 214,165 workers.

Connecticut's largest industrial sector remains transportation equipment followed by fabricated metals and industrial machinery and equipment. All three sectors are down 3 percent to 6 percent.

Factors that led to the decrease were layoffs at Pratt & Whitney and the closure of the Stamford facility of Clairol hair color. There were some job gains as well with Frito-Lay expanding its Killingly plant, the expansion of the Winsted-based H-O Corp. and the planned expansion of chemical manufacturer LiQuifix Inc. in Stamford.