The statewide unemployment rate decreased from 4.4% to 4.3% in March 2017, according to preliminary figures released today by the New York State Department of Labor. This represents New York State’s lowest unemployment rate since February 2007. Pushing the statewide rate lower was another drop in New York City’s rate, which declined from 4.3% to 4.0% in March 2017. New York City’s rate is at an all-time low on records going back to 1976.

In addition, the number of unemployed New Yorkers also decreased over the month – falling from 423,500 in February to 409,100 in March 2017. This represented the state’s lowest level since February 2007.

New York State's private sector job count declined by 5,500, or 0.1%, in March 2017. Since the beginning of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s administration, New York State’s economy has added 946,700 private sector jobs and experienced employment growth in 63 of the past 75 months.

The State’s private sector job count is based on a payroll survey of 18,000 New York employers conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. Monthly payroll employment estimates are preliminary and subject to revision as more data becomes available the following month. The federal government calculates New York State’s unemployment rate based partly upon the results of the Current Population Survey, which contacts approximately 3,100 households in New York State each month.

“New York State’s economy continued to show strength, with the statewide unemployment rate decreasing once more from 4.4% to 4.3%. Additionally, the number of unemployed New Yorkers fell by more than 14,000. The overall private sector job count, measured during the week of the blizzard in March, declined slightly,” said Bohdan M. Wynnyk, Deputy Director of the New York State Department of Labor’s Division of Research and Statistics.

Note: Seasonally adjusted data are used to provide the most valid month-to-month comparison. Non-seasonally adjusted data are valuable in year-to-year comparisons of the same month – for example, March 2016 versus March 2017.

United States and New York State: February – March 2017

1) Jobs data (seasonally adjusted):

The table below compares the over-the-month change in total nonfarm and private sector jobs in the United States and New York State in February – March 2017.

2) Unemployment rates (seasonally adjusted):

The State’s unemployment rate is calculated by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, using a statistical regression model that primarily uses the results of the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS contacts approximately 3,100 households in New York State each month. In March 2017, the statewide unemployment rate decreased from 4.4% to 4.3%. The number of unemployed New Yorkers decreased from 423,500 in February to 409,100 in March 2017.

U.S., New York State and Metro Areas: March 2016 – March 2017

1) Jobs data (not seasonally adjusted):

The following table compares the over-the-year change in total nonfarm and private sector jobs that occurred in the United States, New York State and metro areas within the State between March 2016 and March 2017.

Job highlights since March 2016:

• Twelve metro areas in New York State added private sector jobs over the past year, with the most rapid growth in these areas:
  • Glens Falls(+2.6%)
  • Ithaca (+2.5%)
  • Watertown-Fort Drum (+1.7%)
  • Nassau-Suffolk (+1.5%)
  • New York City (+1.5%)
  • Utica-Rome (+1.4%)
• Over the past year, two metro areas in the state – Elmira (-2.6%) and Rochester (-0.9%) – lost private sector jobs.

Change in jobs by major industry sector: March 2016 – March 2017

1) Jobs data (not seasonally adjusted):

The table below compares the over-the-year change in jobs by major industry sector in New York State occurring between March 2016 and March 2017.

Highlights among New York State sectors with job gains since March 2016:

• Private educational and health services added the most jobs (+61,000) of any major industry sector over the past year. Sector job gains were mostly in health care and social assistance (+65,700), especially ambulatory health care (+27,000).
• From March 2016 to March 2017, the second largest employment increase occurred in professional and business services (+35,400). Sector gains were centered in professional, scientific and technical services (+22,500) and administrative and support services (+12,100).
• The third largest increase in jobs over the past year occurred in government, which grew by 8,500. Over-the-year job gains in this sector were centered at the local (+4,500) and state (+2,600) levels.
• Leisure and hospitality had the fourth largest increase in jobs (+8,300) between March 2016 and March 2017. Over-the-year sector job gains were mostly in accommodation and food services (+13,800), especially food services and drinking places (+11,500).

Highlights among New York State sectors with job losses since March 2016:

• Over the past 12 months, manufacturing lost the most jobs (-13,500) of any major industry sector in New York State. Over-the-year sector losses were concentrated in durable goods (-11,900), especially computers and electronic products (-3,100) and machinery manufacturing (-1,300).

Unemployment Insurance Benefits: March 2017

1) Regular Unemployment Insurance (UI):

For New York State, during the week that included March 12, 2017, there were 157,003 people (including 144,500 who live in the State) who received benefits under the regular Unemployment Insurance program.

In March 2017, New York State residents who received Unemployment Insurance benefits made up 35% of the total unemployed.

Note: The responsibility for the production of monthly estimates of state and metro area nonfarm employment by industry moved from the Division of Research and Statistics to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), starting with the March 2011 estimates. More detailed information on the change is available on the BLS web site.

Many economic data series have a seasonal pattern, which means they tend to occur at the same time each year (e.g., retail jobs usually increase in December). Seasonal adjustment is the process of removing seasonal effects from a data series. This is done to simplify the data so that they may be more easily interpreted and help to reveal true underlying trends. Seasonal adjustment permits comparisons of data from one month to data from any other month.

Labor force statistics, including the unemployment rate, for New York and every other state are based on statistical regression models specified by the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In New York State, payroll jobs data by industry come from a monthly survey of 18,000 business establishments. Jobs data by industry do not include agricultural workers, the self-employed, unpaid family workers or domestic workers in private households.

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