Jul. 3--U.S. employers continued to cut payrolls in June, quashing job market optimism generated by smaller losses in May and even hurting the wages of those who are employed.

The official jobless rate inched up to 9.5 percent from 9.4 percent previously estimated for May. The loss of 467,000 nonfarm payroll jobs compared with 345,000 in May.

Although 9 in 10 members of the American work force are employed, the average workweek fell in June to 33 hours, the lowest level on record since the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking it in 1964. For the last seven years, the weekly average fluctuated from 33.6 to 33.9 hours.

Shorter workweeks and the growth of part-time, rather than full-time, jobs are slicing into overall earnings. With 14.7 million unemployed workers, an oversupply of labor is allowing employers to hire people for less money.

Three other notable effects emerged from employment data released Thursday:

--The percentage of unemployed who can't find a full-time job and are classified as "discouraged" or "marginally attached" workers rose to a high of 16.5 percent.

--After 18 straight months of job losses, there now are fewer nonfarm payroll jobs in the nation than there were in May 2000. Nine years of prior job growth have been lost.

"This is the only recession since the Great Depression to wipe out all job growth from the previous business cycle," said Heidi Shierholz with the Economic Policy Institute.

--Joblessness is hitting men harder than women.

Unemployment among men rose to 10 percent, just 0.1 percentage point below its previous post-World War II high in December 1982, noted Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. The unemployment rate for women was 7.5 percent last month.

Job losses were widespread across industries, with the service-providing sector eliminating 244,000 jobs and manufacturing cutting 136,000.

Job cuts in transportation equipment and motor vehicle manufacturing were estimated at 58,400 for the month, a stark expression of the U.S. auto industry's travails.

Since the recession began, employment in motor vehicles and parts has fallen by 335,000, or about one-third of that work force, the Labor Department said.

The only job gainers, as in previous months, were in the education and health care category, which added a net 34,000 jobs. Health care accounted for 20,800 of the gains.