Gothamist

A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.

Gothamist

WNYC Listen Live

Donate

 

 

News

NY State's Depressing Unemployment Numbers

By

Jen Chung

Published Mar 6, 2009

Modified Mar 6, 2009

Share

FacebookTwitterRedditEmail

Never miss a story

 Email address

By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .

Graph depicting the rate of job losses in New York State during recent recessions from the NY State Department of Labor.

 

By

Jen Chung

Published Mar 6, 2009

Modified Mar 6, 2009

Share

FacebookTwitterRedditEmail

We rely on your support to make local news available to all

Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Yesterday, the NY State Department of Labor revealed the state unemployment rate climbed to 7% in January, up from 6.6% in December. More troubling, 25% of the 400,000 jobs added between July 2003 (the state's last decline) and August 2008 were lost in the final months of 2008. Division of Research and Statistics. director Peter Neenan said the data "continue to underscore the severity of the steadily deepening recession in New York State." There are almost 500,000 New Yorkers collecting unemployment right now.

For some further context, the unemployment rate in NY State in January 2008 was 4.7%. Additionally, the unemployment rate in NYC was 6.9% for January (which is slightly down from the 7% in December); NYC unemployment was 4.8% in January 2008. Regarding the higher national unemployment numbers, James Brown, who analyzes the NYC data for the DOL, told CityRoom, "It can be expected that [NY state and city] job losses will widen dramatically over the next few months and the pace of over-the-year losses will approach the national performance."

State Labor Commissioner M. Patricia Smith announced measures to help unemployed New Yorkers, including "the expansion of hours of operation at One-Stop Career Centers across the state; the establishment of temporary One-Stop Career Centers located at local and community-based organizations in rural communities; and the delivery of career preparation workshops preceding Labor Department-sponsored job fairs."

Tagged

job losses

ny state

recession

Unemployment

Jen Chung

Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.

Read more

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

MORE news

Queens man charged with hate crime at Jewish-owned bagel shop displaying Israeli flags

Prosecutors say the 22-year-old damaged property outside the Fresh Meadows shop twice in May.

By

Giulia Heyward

Published Oct 19, 2026 at 6:07 p.m. ET

MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says

In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."

By

Stephen Nessen

News

MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says

In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."

By

Stephen Nessen

High-ranking NYC officials to testify in ex-buildings boss Eric Ulrich's corruption trial

By

David Brand

Mamdani launches new team to help NYers keep SNAP, Medicaid benefits

By

Caroline Lewis

Riders at 53rd St. station where man was fatally shot say they worry about gun violence

By

Ramsey Khalifeh

Never miss a story

Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.

Sign upEmail address

By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .