CNY unemployment rates decline, job growth mixed

Unemployment rates in the Syracuse, Binghamton, Utica–Rome, and Ithaca metro areas declined in March, compared to a year ago

That’s according to the latest New York State Department of Labor data released April 22.

The jobless rate in the Syracuse area was 7.1 percent in March, down from 8.2 percent in March 2013. The unemployment rate in the Utica–Rome region fell to 7.6 percent in March, from 8.7 percent in the year-ago period.

The unemployment rate in the Binghamton region was 7.6 percent in March, down from the 8.5 percent posted a year ago, according to figures from the state Labor Department.

The jobless rate in the Ithaca area came in at 4.4 percent in March, down from 5.0 percent in March 2013, the state Labor Department said.

The data isn’t seasonally adjusted, meaning the figures don’t reflect seasonal influences such as holiday hires.

The New York counties with among the highest unemployment rates in March include Lewis at 10.7 and Jefferson at 10.1 percent. Bronx County had the state’s highest jobless rate in March at 11.7 percent.

At 4.4 percent, Tompkins County posted the lowest unemployment rate in New York during March.

The unemployment rates are calculated following procedures prescribed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the state Labor Department said.

CNY jobs data
The Syracuse metro area lost 1,500 total jobs between March 2013 and this past March, a drop of 0.5 percent, according to jobs data the state Labor Department released on April 17. The Syracuse region lost 1,200 private-sector jobs in the same period, also a decline of 0.5 percent.

The Ithaca region lost 1,000 total jobs year-over-year, a decrease of 1.4 percent. Ithaca’s private-sector employers employed 1,000 fewer people in March 2014 than in March 2013, a decline of 1.6 percent.

In the Utica–Rome metro area, the state figures indicate a year-over-year net gain of 300 total jobs, or 0.2 percent. The region also gained 400 private-sector jobs, a 0.4 percent increase, in the same 12-month period.

The Binghamton area saw a year-over-year net decline of 400 total jobs, or a 0.4 percent decrease. In the same time period, the region’s private-sector jobs fell by 100 between March 2013 and this past March, a decline of 0.1 percent.

The state’s private-sector job count is based on a payroll survey of 18,000 New York employers that the U.S. Department of Labor conducts.

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.

Statewide unemployment
New York’s unemployment rate rose 0.1 percent to 6.9 percent in March, due in part to the state’s “growing labor force.” the New York State Department of Labor said.

The state’s economy lost 900 total jobs between February and March and the state’s private-sector job count remained unchanged month-to-month.

New York’s private-sector job count held steady at 7,539,300 in March, a figure that represents “an all-time high for the month,” the department said.

The preliminary March unemployment rate of 6.9 percent for New York was down from the 7.9 percent rate in March 2013, according to the state Labor Department data.

In areas of the state outside of New York City, which includes all of upstate and Long Island, the unemployment rate fell to 6.0 percent in March, down from 7.2 percent in March 2013.

Educational and health services added the most jobs statewide, more than 41,000 positions, over the last year. The professional and business-services sector was second, adding more than 24,000 jobs.

The leisure and hospitality sector was third on the list, adding nearly 23,000 jobs.

The trade, transportation, and utilities industry followed, adding almost 22,000 jobs.

The manufacturing sector led the way in job losses in March, declining by more than 5,000 positions in the last year, according to the state Labor Department.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com