New York’s economy is looking a tad brighter as the state added 17,400 jobs in September and the unemployment rate dropped slightly, the state Department of Labor announced on Thursday.
The statewide unemployment rate decreased from 4.7% in August to 4.3% in September, the agency said in a press release.
The decrease was led by New York City, which saw its unemployment rate drop from 6.6% in August to 5.6% in September.
Mayor Eric Adams heralded the news in a statement on Thursday.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: New York City isn’t just coming back, it’s back," Adams said. "We’re seeing the highest labor force participation in 12 years, with more New Yorkers reentering the workforce and more New Yorkers finding jobs. Every day, I hear about another business launching or moving to the five boroughs. In fact, one in 10 businesses in New York City has opened in the past year."
Outside of New York City, the unemployment rate ticked up from 3.2% to 3.3%.
New York’s economy, which was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, is slowly rebounding from where it was last year. The unemployment rate fell from 5.7% last September to 3.9% last month, according to the non-seasonally adjusted data used to make year-to-year comparisons.
This story has been updated to include comment from Mayor Eric Adams.
