HV Unemployment Ticks Up Slightly In February

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Unemployment rates across the Hudson Valley ticked up again in February as the area continues to feel the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

As of February, the unemployment rate was 6.4 percent in Dutchess County, 6.7 in Orange, 6.1 percent in Putnam, 6.3 percent in Rockland, 6.8 percent in Ulster and 6.9 percent in Westchester, the state labor department reported.

As of January, the unemployment rate by county was 6.1 percent in Dutchess, 6.6 percent in Orange, 5.8 percent in Putnam, 6.1 percent in Rockland, and 6.7 percent in Ulster and in Westchester.

New York City is still the hardest-hit area in the state, with an unemployment rate of 13.2 percent in February — which is 513,200 people out of work. That's down from the June high point of 20.4 percent, but no improvement from January, when the unemployment rate was 13.1 percent.

Statewide, the unemployment rate in February was 8.9 percent. That's barely a change from January, when the statewide unemployment rate was 8.8 percent.

The region's metro areas recorded steep losses in private-sector jobs over the 12 months ending in February. SEE: HV Coronavirus: New Jobs Data Show The Before And After

According to the state, the unemployment numbers come from a survey of 18,000 businesses in New York, which does not include self-employed workers, agricultural workers, unpaid family workers and domestic workers employed by private households.