SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah's job growth nearly came to a halt in August as the result of a construction industry slowdown in a sluggish housing market.

State statistics released Tuesday show employment grew only .3 percent in August compared with the same period last year.

Mark Knold, chief economist at the Utah Department of Workforce Services, says the housing industry is shedding jobs and that's having a ripple effect through the rest of the work force.

The state has added about 3,200 jobs in the past year.

Utah's unemployment rate jumped to 3.7 percent in August, up from 2.8 percent last year.

Nationally, the unemployment rate is 6.1 percent.