Jobs decrease, but Syracuse unemployment down

Private-sector employers continued to cut jobs across the Empire State, but the unemployment rate improved slightly from March to April, according to the latest monthly report issued today by the New York State Department of Labor.

The state's seasonally adjusted private-sector job count decreased over the month by 15,600, or 0.2 percent, to 7,125,200 in April 2009. Since the state's private-sector job count peaked in August 2008, New York has lost 189,000 private-sector positions, erasing almost half of the 400,000 jobs added during the state's last economic expansion from 2003 to 2008.

The unemployment rate improved slightly from 7.8 percent in March to 7.7 in April. That compares to 5 percent in April 2008.

The job picture was similar in Central New York's main cities in April, but with unemployment rates improving by larger margins compared to the March numbers.

In Syracuse, the number of private-sector jobs fell by 4,200 in the past year. The area's unemployment rate was 7.7 percent in April, compared with 8.5 percent in March and 4.8 percent a year ago.

In the Utica-Rome area, the number of private-sector jobs decreased by 1,100 over the last 12 months. The area's unemployment rate was 7.4 percent, down from 8.3 percent in March, and up from 5.1 percent a year ago.

In the Binghamton region, the number of private-sector jobs decreased by 2,500 over the last year. The area's unemployment rate was 7.7 percent in April, compared with 8.6 percent in March and 4.8 percent a year ago.

The nation's unemployment rate was 8.9 percent in April, up from 8.5 percent in March and 5 percent a year ago.