According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, New York's unemployment rate rose during the month of June. Joblessness increased 0.5 percent from May’s 8.2 percent to 8.7 percent. Although there was a rise in the percentage of people without jobs in New York, the state’s unemployment rate remained below the national average of 9.5 percent. Still, this is figure is significantly higher than where the figure stood during the same month in 2008. Only 12 months ago it stood at 5.3 percent.

Despite the rise in joblessness, New York workers are feeling somewhat optimistic about the state’s employment situation. According to a recent press release, Spherion’s New York Employee Confidence Index rose during the month of June. The figure jumped 1.9 points from the previous month to stand at 47.8. This was the fourth month in a row that the Index rose.

Every month Harris Interactive conducts the poll on behalf of Spherion to determine the feelings of employees in the state. In June the survey found the percentage of people who believe the economy is weakening dropped. According to the press release, there was also a decrease in the number of employees who felt that the there were fewer jobs available in their areas.

Of those who participated in the survey, only 33 percent of employees felt that the economy was getting worse. This was a decrease of 14 percentage points from the previous month’s 47 percent. The percentage of people who said there not many job available in their area also fell 9 percentage points to 64 percent.

Workers also reported that they felt more secure in the security of their current positions. A total of 64 percent of people surveyed said that did not feel they would be losing their job any time in the foreseeable future. This was a 4 percent increase from the previous month’s 60 percent.

"Despite the fact that the state's unemployment rate continues to increase, following national trends, more workers are feeling confident about the employment situation," said Linda Perneau, vice president and general manager of Spherion Staffing Services, in the recent press release. "Our confidence index continues to increase from month to month, and we are seeing job fears subside somewhat. This month our report shows that 64 percent of workers are confident in the future of their employer, signaling that many employers may be stabilizing and employees are feeling more secure about their current job situation."

Labels: New York jobs