The New York State Department of Labor today released preliminary local area unemployment rates for February 2018. St. Lawrence County, following a North Country trend in other counties, experienced an unemployment rate increase.

This is contrary to the national and state trends which showed a drop in unemployment in February.

St. Lawrence County's unemployment rate in February 2018 was 8.1 percent, up from 7.9 percent in February 2017. The 2018 rates in two neighboring counties were also higher -- 8.7 percent in Jefferson County (up from 8.4 percent in February 2017) and 7.5 percent in Franklin County (up from 7.2 percent in February 2017).

The number of employed people in St. Lawrence County was estimated by the labor department to be 40,600, with the number of unemployed at 3,600 in February. In the same month in 2017, the county sported 40,800 employed people and 3,500 unemployed.

New York State's overall unemployment rate in February 2018 was 5.1 percent, a decrease from February 2017 when it was 5.3 percent. This compares to the national rate of 4.4 percent in February, also a drop from 2017 when the rate was 4.9 percent in the same month.

From February 2017 to February 2018, the State’s private sector job count increased by 97,200. In February 2018, the number of private sector jobs in the State was 8,151,800. The State’s private sector job count is based on a payroll survey of 18,000 New York employers, which is conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In addition, the State’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased from 4.7 percent to 4.6 in February 2018.

Rates are calculated using methods prescribed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The State’s area unemployment rates rely in part on the results of the Current Population Survey, which contacts approximately 3,100 households in New York State each month.