Overall unemployment rate moved down to 5.5% with the biggest shift in Transportation & Utilities, which gained 27,200 roles, based on the most recently available information published in February 2022.

Total employment in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA market rose by 21,071 jobs in December and the unemployment rate decreased compared to the prior month by 40 bps to 5.5%. The national unemployment rate decreased by 20 bps over the same time to 3.7%.

  • New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA unemployment rate is 181 bps above the national rate which is a negative sign.
  • Unemployment in the market is 310 bps below the unemployment rate in the market last year at this time, which is a positive.
  • Average wages (per hour) grew in December versus prior month by 3% and are up compared to last year at this time in the market.
Month over Month Unemployment Change
Year over Year Unemployment Change
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA Unemployment December 2021

For key employment segments of the market, total jobs grew by 0.4% . Key sectors include:

  • Education & Healthcare: 2,023,900; -1,500
  • Transportation & Utilities: 1,668,800; +27,200
  • Business Services: 1,574,700; +11,300
  • Government: 1,310,800; -5,600
  • Financial Services: 752,200; +2,200
  • Restaurants & Hotels: 723,400; +4,700
  • Construction, Mining: 368,900; -6,100
  • Other Jobs: 360,300; +400
  • Manufacturing: 341,200; +2,300
  • IT & Development: 304,800; -800
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA Unemployment by Industry December 2021

Data is based on the most recent 12 months available, through December 2021 (Data published February 2022 and reports created on February 4, 2022).  Source: Government data agency and locally acquired statistics.

Note: All reported data is not seasonally adjusted.