Counties with the highest unemployment rate in New York
Counties with the highest unemployment rate in New York
Unemployment rates, while significantly lower than the alarming pandemic peak of 14.7% experienced in April 2020, remain a subject of concern, notably as economic experts bandy around the idea of a potential recession by 2023. The last economic recession—the Great Recession of 2008-2010—sent rates up to 10% as of October 2009. It was not until the spring of 2019 that unemployment finally went down to the same level it sits at now.
As of June of this year, national unemployment is at 3.5%, 0.1% lower than in May, marking a three-month stagnation—following a steady drop since that aforementioned COVID-affected peak. Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates by state demonstrate a rather sizable spectrum, ranging from just 1.8% in Minnesota, to 4.9% in New Mexico and 5.5% in the District of Columbia. Further breakdown by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows yet another county-based spectrum within each state.
To that end, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rate in New York using data from the BLS. Counties are ranked by unemployment rate in June 2022, which as of this writing is the most current Bureau data.
You may also like: Cities with the fastest-growing home prices in New York
#50. Rensselaer County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 83,168 (2,465 unemployed)

#49. Essex County
--- 1 month change: 0.0%
--- 1 year change: -1.7%
-Total Labor Force: 17,400 (516 unemployed)
#48. Chenango County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.6%
-Total Labor Force: 22,323 (662 unemployed)

#47. Tioga County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 22,570 (670 unemployed)
#46. Washington County
--- 1 month change: +0.1%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 28,637 (854 unemployed)
You may also like: New York is the #2 state with the fewest people living near toxic release facilities
#45. Suffolk County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 808,890 (24,330 unemployed)
#44. Sullivan County
--- 1 month change: 0.0%
--- 1 year change: -2.2%
-Total Labor Force: 38,807 (1,180 unemployed)
#43. Warren County
--- 1 month change: 0.0%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 32,515 (989 unemployed)

#42. Albany County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 161,382 (4,913 unemployed)
#41. Ulster County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 89,294 (2,724 unemployed)
You may also like: Best places to live in New York
#40. Wayne County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.7%
-Total Labor Force: 43,761 (1,336 unemployed)

#39. Dutchess County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 147,175 (4,503 unemployed)
#38. Livingston County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.6%
-Total Labor Force: 30,511 (936 unemployed)

#37. Otsego County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.6%
-Total Labor Force: 27,760 (856 unemployed)
#36. Madison County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 33,025 (1,026 unemployed)
You may also like: Highest NFL draft picks from New York
#35. Schuyler County
--- 1 month change: +0.1%
--- 1 year change: -1.7%
-Total Labor Force: 8,404 (265 unemployed)

#34. Westchester County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 499,158 (15,813 unemployed)

#33. Cayuga County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.7%
-Total Labor Force: 35,866 (1,145 unemployed)
#32. Orange County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 191,188 (6,104 unemployed)
#31. Schoharie County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -1.6%
-Total Labor Force: 14,902 (478 unemployed)
You may also like: New York is the #7 state where food stamps are used the most

#30. Lewis County
--- 1 month change: 0.0%
--- 1 year change: -1.5%
-Total Labor Force: 12,034 (387 unemployed)
#29. Franklin County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 19,519 (631 unemployed)

#28. Clinton County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.8%
-Total Labor Force: 35,390 (1,145 unemployed)
#27. Schenectady County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.1%
-Total Labor Force: 78,893 (2,612 unemployed)

#26. Greene County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 20,628 (683 unemployed)
You may also like: Highest-earning counties in New York

#25. Onondaga County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.1%
-Total Labor Force: 225,782 (7,491 unemployed)
#24. Steuben County
--- 1 month change: +0.1%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 42,379 (1,408 unemployed)
#23. Delaware County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.5%
-Total Labor Force: 19,023 (660 unemployed)

#22. Jefferson County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.6%
-Total Labor Force: 45,555 (1,582 unemployed)

#21. Oneida County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 102,004 (3,550 unemployed)
You may also like: Counties in New York where people spend most of their paycheck on housing

#20. Monroe County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.2%
-Total Labor Force: 368,494 (12,911 unemployed)

#19. Erie County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.2%
-Total Labor Force: 451,168 (16,176 unemployed)
#18. Chemung County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.2%
-Total Labor Force: 35,375 (1,284 unemployed)

#17. Cortland County
--- 1 month change: +0.5%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 22,094 (803 unemployed)
#16. Allegany County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.7%
-Total Labor Force: 19,537 (711 unemployed)
You may also like: Most valuable crops grown in New York

#15. Niagara County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.4%
-Total Labor Force: 99,419 (3,631 unemployed)
#14. Herkimer County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.3%
-Total Labor Force: 27,820 (1,021 unemployed)
#13. Cattaraugus County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 34,005 (1,255 unemployed)
#12. Chautauqua County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 53,956 (1,993 unemployed)
#11. Orleans County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -1.9%
-Total Labor Force: 17,298 (644 unemployed)
You may also like: Best community colleges in New York

#10. Broome County
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 83,668 (3,131 unemployed)
#9. Fulton County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 22,973 (864 unemployed)
#8. Montgomery County
--- 1 month change: +0.2%
--- 1 year change: -2.1%
-Total Labor Force: 22,401 (875 unemployed)

#7. Oswego County
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -2.0%
-Total Labor Force: 53,257 (2,146 unemployed)
#6. St. Lawrence County
--- 1 month change: +0.7%
--- 1 year change: -1.5%
-Total Labor Force: 42,834 (1,737 unemployed)
You may also like: Best private high schools in New York

#5. Manhattan
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -3.4%
-Total Labor Force: 889,799 (43,096 unemployed)

#4. Staten Island
--- 1 month change: +0.5%
--- 1 year change: -3.6%
-Total Labor Force: 219,429 (12,463 unemployed)
#3. Queens
--- 1 month change: +0.3%
--- 1 year change: -4.7%
-Total Labor Force: 1,106,883 (63,005 unemployed)

#2. Brooklyn
--- 1 month change: +0.5%
--- 1 year change: -4.5%
-Total Labor Force: 1,171,702 (73,232 unemployed)
#1. Bronx
--- 1 month change: +0.4%
--- 1 year change: -6.0%
-Total Labor Force: 586,295 (49,161 unemployed)
You may also like: States where people in New York are getting new jobs