NYC unemployment reaches lowest level in nearly a decade

The city is touting its job numbers after new data shows that unemployment is at the lowest level since 2006.

October stats from the state Department of Labor released Thursday not only said that the unemployment rate has reached its lowest level since August 2006, but also put that rate below national unemployment for the first time since June 2011.

Growth was “especially strong” in health care, retail and finance over the last year, according to the New York City Economic Development Corporation.

Average weekly earnings for private sector workers are up 2.4 percent from last year, with a total of 4,255,100 jobs currently in the city.

A statement from the NYEDC also pointed out the strides the city has made in recent years with unemployment, stating that the citywide unemployment rate is down from 6.6 percent this time last year, and down from 8.1 percent in December 2013.

“Unemployment is down 3.3 percentage points since Mayor de Blasio took office, and with average weekly earnings up, more New Yorkers are now in a better position to support their families, said NYEDC President Maria Torres-Springer in a statement. “Growth in the healthcare and tech sectors means that more people are on pathways to careers in well-paying fields.”