A worker holds a sign announcing a store-closing sale outside the 60-year-old Sears store in Chicago.

Department stores and general merchandisers led job losses in the retail industry for the month of December.

The U.S. economy created 148,000 jobs in December, missing Wall Street expectations of 190,000.

The retail industry suffered job losses of roughly 20,000. The downward trend in retail jobs is believed to be a result of an ongoing shift to e-commerce sales.

Here are the net changes in the retail industry for the month of December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.