(WETM) – The New York State Department of Labor announced its February 2023 unemployment numbers, and in the Southern Tier, the total unemployment rate has dropped slightly since this time last year, according to the data.
The numbers from the NYSDOL showed that for several counties across the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes, the unemployment rate from February 2022 to February 2023 dropped a couple tenths of a percent.
The NYS average unemployment rate is 4.5%, and many local counties fall under that number. However, in the department’s color-coded map of counties and their respective unemployment numbers, Schuyler County was listed at the high end of the spectrum at over 5%.
February 2023
- Chemung County: 4.2%
- Schuyler County: 5.1%
- Seneca County: 4.0%
- Steuben County: 4.8%
- Tioga County: 3.9%
- Tompkins County: 2.9%
- Yates County: 3.7%
February 2022
- Chemung County: 4.4%
- Schuyler County: 5.4%
- Seneca County: 4.3%
- Steuben County: 4.8%
- Tioga County: 4.4%
- Tompkins County: 3.1%
- Yates County: 3.8%
The DOL said one way it gets unemployment numbers is with the Current Population Survey that goes out to 3,100 households each month.
It is important to note that while the actual number of unemployed people changed only slightly or not at all, according to the state numbers, the overall workforce shrank in each of the seven counties listed. The state also said the numbers are not “seasonally-adjusted”, meaning they don’t take into account things like seasonal weather or holidays, for example.
