New York State’s economy has added 869,600 private sector jobs and experienced employment growth in 61 of the past 72 months. In December 2016, New York’s statewide unemployment rate decreased from 5.1% to 4.9%.
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.
“The State’s labor market continued to expand in December 2016. Not only did the statewide economy reach a new record high for private sector jobs, but New York State’s unemployment rate decreased from 5.1% to 4.9% in December,” said Bohdan M. Wynnyk, Deputy Director of the New York State Department of Labor’s Division of Research and Statistics.
From a year ago, the Buffalo-Niagara Falls region has seen a net gain of 7,100 jobs, 6,900 of which were in the private sector, making it the third highest grossing region in the state for the year. In the Rochester region, that gain was 4,400 total jobs, 4,200 of which were in the private sector.
Statewide, private educational and health services added the most jobs (+65,300) of any major industry sector over the past year. Sector job gains were mostly in health care and social assistance (+45,700), especially ambulatory health care (+25,300). From December 2015 to December 2016, the second largest employment increase occurred in leisure and hospitality, which grew by 23,300. Over-the-year sector job gains were mostly in accommodation and food services (+18,400), especially food services and drinking places (+20,200). The third largest employment increase over the past year occurred in professional and business services (+13,800). Sector gains were centered in professional, scientific and technical services (+9,400), especially management, scientific, and technical consulting services (+6,300).
