Regional jobs picture was mixed in the last year Unemployment rates in the Syracuse, Utica–Rome, Watertown–Fort Drum, Binghamton, Ithaca, and Elmira regions all rose in October compared to a year ago. The figures are part of the latest New York State Department of Labor data released Nov. […]
Regional jobs picture was mixed in the last year
Unemployment rates in the Syracuse, Utica–Rome, Watertown–Fort Drum, Binghamton, Ithaca, and Elmira regions all rose in October compared to a year ago.
The figures are part of the latest New York State Department of Labor data released Nov. 19.
On the job-growth side, the Syracuse, Watertown–Fort Drum, Ithaca, and Elmira areas gained jobs between October 2018 and this past October, while the Utica–Rome and Binghamton regions lost jobs in the same period.
That’s according to the latest monthly employment report that the state Department of Labor issued Nov. 14.
Regional unemployment rates
The jobless rate in the Syracuse area rose to 3.9 percent in October from 3.5 percent in October 2018.
The Utica–Rome region’s unemployment rate was 3.9 percent, up from 3.6 percent a year ago; the Watertown–Fort Drum area’s rate rose to 4.9 percent from 4.1 percent; the Binghamton region’s measure climbed to 4.2 percent from 3.8 percent; the Ithaca area’s jobless rate hit 3.5 percent, compared to 3.1 percent; and the Elmira region’s rate was 4 percent in October, up from 3.9 percent a year before.
The local-unemployment data isn’t seasonally adjusted, meaning the figures don’t reflect seasonal influences such as holiday hires.
The unemployment rates are calculated following procedures prescribed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the state Labor Department said.
State unemployment rate
New York state’s unemployment rate was 4.0 percent in October, up from from 3.9 percent in September and up from 3.8 percent in October 2018, according to state Labor Department figures.
The state’s 4.0 percent unemployment rate was higher than the U.S. figure of 3.6 percent in October.
The federal government calculates New York’s unemployment rate partly based upon the results of a monthly telephone survey of 3,100 state households that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics conducts.
October job growth data
The Syracuse region gained 5,200 jobs in the past year, up 1.6 percent.
The Utica–Rome metro area lost 300 jobs, a decrease of 0.2 percent; the Watertown–Fort Drum area gained 300 jobs, an increase of 0.7 percent; the Binghamton region shed 200 positions, a drop of 0.2 percent; the Ithaca area gained 1,800 jobs, an increase of 2.7 percent; and the Elmira region picked up 400 positions, a rise of 1.1 percent.
New York state as a whole gained more than 103,000 jobs, an increase of 1.1 percent, in the past year. The state economy gained 7,800 jobs in the latest month, the department reported.