WNY unemployment up, private jobs down

The good news coming out of the state Department of Labor is that the overall number of jobs locally has grown in the past year but not in the private sector.

The monthly report issued Thursday shows nonfarm jobs in the Buffalo-Niagara falls metropolitan area have increased by 1,100, or 0.2 percent. At the same time private-sector employment has decreased by 1,200, or 0.3 percent. Also, the area's unemployment rate was 6.2 percent in March, compared with 6.3 percent in February and 4.9 percent in March 2007.

Rochester's employment picture was similar to Buffalo. That market's nonfarm job count was up by 700, or 0.1 percent, but the number of private sector jobs has decreased by 600, or 0.1 percent in the year-over-year period. Unemployment in Rochester was 5.7 percent in March 2008, even with February and up from 4.5 percent from last March.

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The state's private-sector job base decreased over the month by 1,100, or less than 0.1 percent, to 7.26 million.

New York state's unemployment rate, after seasonal adjustment, was 4.8 percent in March 2008, up from 4.4 percent in February.

In a separate report, the New York Employee Confidence Index decreased 10.8 points to a record low 39.4 in March, according to the latest Spherion (Corp.) Employment Report.

The monthly survey of New York state workers conducted by Harris Interactive of Rochester reveals a significant increase in worker's concern about the number of jobs available and in their own ability to find a new job. The survey also reveals an increase in the number of workers who feel the economy is getting weaker.

"The instability of the nation's economy appears to be greatly impacting New York workers' overall confidence levels," said Linda Perneau, vice president of Spherion Staffing Services.

She added although this is the lowest index ever for the report, there are pockets of the New York State labor market where our business is seeing job creation, particularly in the insurance, technology, finance and administrative sectors.