Hiring among U.S. employers dropped in April with the fewest jobs added in seven months, sending a foreboding signal ahead of the Labor Department's jobs report on Friday.

Private employers added 119,000 jobs in April on a seasonally adjusted basis, down from the revised 201,000 jobs added in March, said payroll company ADP on Wednesday.

The service sector saw some of the highest gains, with an increase of 123,000 jobs in April, down from 158,000 in March.

Manufacturing employment fell 5,000 jobs in April, the first loss since September. The construction sector's employment also fell by 5,000 jobs, the first decline in seven months, following "healthy gains during the unusually warm winter months," ADP reported.

The national unemployment rate is 8.2 percent after 120,000 jobs were added in March, according to the Labor Department in early April. Economists are expecting a consensus of 165,000 jobs added for April in Friday's report, keeping the unemployment rate unchanged, according to Bloomberg.