November’s employment numbers were revised to show a net gain of 4,000 jobs, the first increase in nearly two years, but December’s numbers brought more bad news.

The government reported a much worse than expected loss of 85,000 jobs in December, when according to CNNMoney.com, a Briefing.com survey of economists had expected no net gain or loss in jobs for the month.

The national unemployment rate stayed at 10 percent in December, but the economy has now lost 7.2 million jobs since the start of 2008. Still, the 85,000 jobs lost in December was the smallest job loss of the year, and well below January’s loss of 741,000 jobs.

Construction lost 53,000 workers, manufacturing dropped 27,000 jobs, the leisure and hospitality industries slashed 25,000 jobs, and retail employment decreased by 10,000 jobs. One positive sign is 46,500 additional temporary-help jobs, which is positive because it can be an indicator of job growth because employers will often add part-time workers before hiring permanent employees, CNNMoney.com reported.

In an effort to boost job growth, the government has announced additional measures, and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said he will maintain record-low interest rates until joblessness recovers, Bloomberg.com reported.