Wethersfield (AP) - The state Labor Department says employers in Connecticut cut 3,600 jobs in August, with schools taking a hit due to a quirk in statistical sampling.

Officials said Thursday the state's unemployment rate of 6.6 percent was unchanged from July. It's the lowest since December 2008 when the rate was 6.7 percent.

The jobs loss broke a six-month string of gains.

The private sector, which comprises about 86 percent of Connecticut's employment, added jobs for the seventh consecutive month.

Department research director Andy Condon says the halt in employment growth could be due to early sampling in August compared with the typical return of public school educators and support staff.

Despite the downturn in August, Connecticut's nonfarm employment has increased 5,600 jobs since August 2013, an increase of 0.3 percent.