Albany, NY (March 29, 2012) -
New York State's economy added 21,300 private sector jobs, or 0.3%, in February 2012, the State Labor Department reported today. Since the state's economic recovery began in November 2009, New York has recouped 95%, or 309,200, of the private sector jobs lost during the state's recession in 2008-2009.
Year over year from February 2011 to February 2012, New York State added 138,500 net new private sector jobs.
Almost 10% of all new jobs created in the United States in February were created in New York State.
"In February 2012, the New York State economy continued to grow as it added more than 21,000 private sector jobs. The state is poised to regain all of the private sector jobs lost during the 2008-2009 recession," said Bohdan M. Wynnyk, Deputy Director of the Division of Research and Statistics.
1) Unemployment rates (seasonally adjusted):
The state's unemployment rate for February 2012 was 8.5%, up from January 2012's level of 8.3%. Over the same time period, the U.S. unemployment rate remained unchanged at 8.3%. The number of unemployed New Yorkers also increased over the month -- from 787,900 in January to 805,800 in February 2012.
Note: The data above are seasonally adjusted. Seasonally adjusted data 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, February 2011 versus February 2012.
| *Data are preliminary and subject to change, based on standard procedures outlined by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. | |||
| February 2012* | January 2012 | February 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 8.3 | 8.3 | 9.0 |
| New York State | 8.5 | 8.3 | 8.1 |
| New York City | 9.6 | 9.3 | 8.8 |
| NYS, outside NYC | 7.7 | 7.6 | 7.6 |
2) Jobs data (seasonally adjusted):
U.S. and New York State, January 2012 - February 2012
The table below compares the over-the-month change in total nonfarm and private sector jobs in the United States and New York State between January 2012 and February 2012.
| Change in Total Nonfarm Jobs: (private sector + government) |
Change in Private Sector Jobs: | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Net |
% |
Net |
% |
| United States | +227,000 | +0.2% | +233,000 | +0.2% |
| New York State | +24,700 | +0.3% | +21,300 | +0.3% |
3) Jobs data (not seasonally adjusted):
U.S., New York State, Major Regions, and Metro Areas: February 2011 - February 2012
Year over year from February 2011 to February 2012, New York State added 124,000 net new private sector jobs, including 32,000 in upstate New York.
The table below compares the over-the-year change in total nonfarm and private sector jobs in the United States, New York State, the Upstate and Downstate regions, and metro areas in the state between February 2011 and February 2012.
| Change in Total Nonfarm Jobs: (private sector + government) |
Change in Private Sector Jobs: | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Net |
%
|
Net |
%
| |
| United States | +2,016,000 | +1.6% | +2,211,000 | +2.1% |
| New York State | +122,600 | +1.4% | +124,200 | +1.8% |
| Downstate NY (10-co. area) | +86,100 | +1.6% | +90,800 | +2.0% |
| New York City | +62,000 | +1.7% | +65,200 | +2.0% |
| Suburban Counties | +24,100 | +1.4% | +25,600 | +1.8% |
| Nassau-Suffolk | +19,700 | +1.6% | +20,800 | +2.1% |
| Putnam-Rockland-Westchester | +4,400 | +0.8% | +4,800 | +1.1% |
| Upstate NY (52-co. area) | +30,000 | +1.0% | +32,200 | +1.4% |
| Metro Areas | +27,800 | +1.1% | +27,100 | +1.4% |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy | +5,500 | +1.3% | +5,400 | +1.7% |
| Binghamton | +1,400 | +1.3% | +2,200 | +2.7% |
| Buffalo-Niagara Falls | +3,600 | +0.7% | +3,800 | +0.9% |
| Elmira | -1,700 | -4.3% | -1,200 | -3.7% |
| Glens Falls | +3,400 | +6.5% | +3,900 | +9.6% |
| Ithaca | -4,100 | -6.1% | -3,500 | -6.2% |
| Kingston | +1,500 | +2.5% | +1,800 | +4.1% |
| Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown | +5,700 | +2.3% | +4,900 | +2.5% |
| Rochester | +9,000 | +1.8% | +8,200 | +2.0% |
| Syracuse | +1,500 | +0.5% | -500 | -0.2% |
| Utica-Rome | +2,000 | +1.6% | +2,100 | +2.3% |
| Non-metro Counties | +2,200 | +0.4% | +5,100 | +1.3% |
Job highlights since February 2011:
4) Jobs data (not seasonally adjusted):
Change in jobs by major industry sector, February 2011 - February 2012
The table below compares the over-the-year change in jobs by major industry sector in New York State between February 2011 and February 2012.
| *The educational and health services category is in the private sector. Government includes public education and health services. | |||
| Sectors With Job Gains: | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional & Business Services | +55,200 | ||
| Educational & Health Services* | +25,400 | ||
| Leisure & Hospitality | +25,100 | ||
| Trade, Transportation & Utilities | +17,000 | ||
| Financial Activities | +12,900 | ||
| Sectors With Job Losses: | |||
| Information | -5,900 | ||
| Construction | -4,600 | ||
| Government* | -1,600 | ||
| Manufacturing | -700 | ||
| Natural Resources and Mining | -100 | ||
| Other Services | -100 | ||
Highlights among NYS sectors with job gains since February 2011:
Highlights among NYS sectors with job losses since February 2011:
5) Regular Unemployment Insurance (UI), Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) and Extended Benefits (EB) programs:
For New York, during the week that included February 12, 2012, there were 483,642 people (including 443,387 who live in the state) who received benefits under:
New Yorkers who received unemployment insurance made up 55% of the total unemployed in the state in February 2012.
Currently, Unemployment Insurance claimants in New York State may receive up to 93 weeks of benefits. In February 2012, Congress passed an extension of EUC and EB through December 2012. However, we expect New York State will no longer be eligible for EB as of this spring. At that time, the maximum number of weeks of benefits will be 73 until September 2012, when new EUC provisions take effect. See the table that follows for the maximum number of weeks available under the new federal regulations.
| Program: | Current | Spring 2012 | September 2012 | January 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular UI | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 |
| EUC Total | 47 | 47 | 37 | 0 |
|
Tier 1 |
20 | 20 | 14 | 0 |
|
Tier 2 |
14 | 14 | 14 | 0 |
|
Tier 3 |
13 | 13 | 9 | 0 |
| EB | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 93 | 73 | 63 | 26 |
People who file a new claim during the week that begins June 25, 2012 or later are likely to only receive up to 26 weeks of regular UI. We encourage people to use the Department's online Unemployment Insurance calculator to estimate how many weeks they may receive. See the calculator on the State Department of Labor's website or go here: http://www.labor.ny.gov/ui/claimantinfo/UIBenefitsCalculator.shtm
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 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. We survey 18,000 business establishments to get jobs data for New York State by industry. The jobs data do not include agricultural workers, the self-employed, unpaid family workers and domestic workers in private households.
See State and Area Job Data (opens in new window)
See Labor Market Overview (opens in new window)
See Jobs and Unemployment Fact Sheet (opens in new window)
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