Gloomy labor statistics show that the retail apocalypse was worse than we thought

The Bureau of Labor Statistics just revised its benchmark for non-farming jobs.
Retail was one of the hardest hit sectors on its list of revisions.
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The specter of the retail apocalypse still hangs over the whole industry. And the latest gloomy numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that it's not going anywhere soon.

After reviewing its statistics on the numbers of new jobs created between 2018 and 2019, BLS cut its annual benchmark of non-farm jobs by 501,000 jobs.

These numbers aren't just a sign that US President Donald Trump's signature tax cuts didn't actually spur more hiring . They're also an indication that retail is far from out of the woods. The industry was one of the hardest hit sectors on BLS' list of revisions.

As it turns out, the retail trade boasts 146,400 fewer jobs than previously thought, a 0.9% drop.

This isn't even the first time this year that BLS has released job numbers that painted a less-than-rosy picture for the retail industry. In February, it announced that there were 138,000 fewer jobs in retail than previously thought, The Washington Post reported .

When it comes to labor issues, the world of retail has plenty to contend with. Bloomberg reported that private equity has cost 597,000 retail employees their jobs. Meanwhile, topics around the push to raise the federal minimum wage and the rise of automation and ecommerce have also prompted questions about the future of retail jobs.

The changing times have caused some businesses to fall victim to the retail apocalypse , shuttering stores and laying off thousands of workers. Particularly states hit hard include West Virginia, Vermont, Rhode Island, Ohio, Connecticut, and Maryland, Business Insider's Hayley Peterson reported .

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