Latest Jobs Report Out; Cortland Seeing Growth in Number of Jobs

The latest jobs report has been by the New York State Department of Labor.

The report shows the number of private sector jobs in New York State increased over the month by 5,600, to 8,464,400 in March 2025. The number of private sector jobs in the U.S. increased by 0.2% in March 2025.

New York State’s private sector jobs (not seasonally adjusted) increased by 89,400, or 1.1%, over the year in March 2025, that’s lower than the 1.2% increase in the number of private sector jobs in the U.S.

New York State’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased from 4.3% in February to 4.2% in March 2025. At the same time, New York State’s labor force (seasonally adjusted) increased by 7,200. The statewide labor force participation rate held steady at 60.9% in March 2025.

The number of private sector jobs in New York State is based on a payroll survey of New York businesses conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Here in Cortland County, a large increase in nonfarm jobs was seen this past March, compared to March 2024 according to State Labor Department numbers.

Cortland had the second highest percent change of non metropolitan areas after Yates County. Cortland County’s percent increase was 2.9%. Neighboring Tompkins County area saw a .9% decrease.