A homeless man cadges on a street of Manhattan, New York, the United States of America, Nov. 11, 2008. The unemployment rate in the United States rose to 6.7 percent in November, the highest level in 15 years, as employers slashed 533,000 jobs, the most since December 1974, the Labor Department reported Friday.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- The unemployment rate in the United States rose to 6.7 percent in November, the highest level in 15 years, as employers slashed 533,000 jobs, the most since December 1974, the Labor Department reported Friday.

Employers have cut jobs each month this year. Job losses in September and October turned out to be much worse. Employers cut 403,000 jobs in September, versus 284,000 previously reported, and axed 320,000 in October, compared with an initial estimate of 240,000.

Since the start of the recession in December 2007, as recently announced by the National Bureau of Economic Research, employment has fallen by 1.9 million. Two-thirds of the losses occurred in the past three months.

The unemployment rate of 6.7 percent, which followed a 6.5 percent rate in October, has surpassed the high seen after the last recession in 2001. The jobless rate peaked at 6.3 percent in June 2003.

Economists had been expecting the jobless rate to climb to 6.8 percent and employers to cut 320,000 jobs in November.

Job losses were large and widespread across the major industry sectors last month.

Factories cut 85,000 jobs, construction companies axed 82,000 jobs, retailers cut payrolls by 91,000, professional and business services reduced employment by 101,000, financial activities cut 32,000 jobs, and leisure and hospitality axed 76,000 positions.

The reductions offset an employment gain of 34,000 in health care.

The new figures released by the Labor Department showed that the employment market, which is critical for the overall economy to grow, has been deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid clip.

Embattled by a housing collapse, mounting foreclosures and credit tightening, employers could cut back on hiring further. Many economies expect the unemployment rate to climb to 8 percent, possibly higher, next year.