HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania reported a loss of 2,900 jobs in March, the second straight monthly decline in the state.

The loss represents less than a tenth of a percent of the state's seasonally adjusted count of 5.8 million non-farm jobs, a proportion similar to the 80,000 jobs that the federal government said were shed by employers in March.

Construction, manufacturing and tourism lost jobs, while education and health services and the trade, transportation and utilities sector added jobs, the state Department of Labor and Industry said Thursday.

The state's unemployment rate — a gauge of how many people are looking for work — remained stable at 4.9 percent, but is above last year's rate of 4.3 percent. The national rate was 5.1 percent in March.